A Parent's Legacy
by Bill K
Summary: Neo-Sailor Moon and the Asteroid Senshi travel to another planet to settle a dispute between a parent and child that threatens to ignite a war between two coexisting species.
1. Summoned

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 1: "Summoned"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

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><p>Sailor Moon and all related characters are (c)2014 by Naoko Takeuchi and are used without permission, but with respect. Story is (c)2014 by Bill K.<p>

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><p><em>Rei Hino walked down the corridor of the Crystal Tokyo palace with a calm, but purposeful gait. She gave cursory nods to the palace staff she met along the way, but did not stop. They all recognized through experience with the priest that she was focused on something important and at times such as these she often let manners slip by the wayside. Given all of the times she had been an aid both to the general population of the city and country and to the beloved Queen herself, such things were easily forgiven and forgotten. <em>

"_I wonder what it is this time," a cleaning attendant wondered to herself. The woman, just nineteen, was relatively new to the staff and didn't have as much experience with the priest as others. As such, the woman's manner still intimidated her. Rei came up to the door to a living quarters and stopped._

"_No identification," she whispered. The environmental control computer immediately countermanded its programmed identification response to the person inside the room. Rei stood there for a moment, focusing on her feelings to make sure she'd sensed what she thought she did. _

_There was no doubt. It washed over her like a wave. Her head bowed for a moment over what she sensed. Then the priest made a decision. Her hand touched a panel next to the door. Sensory devices embedded in the panel scanned her fingerprints. The door hissed open softly. Rei entered the Royal Chambers and crossed over to the entrance to one room. She pressed her hand to another panel and that door opened as well. _

_Huddled in the bed, as forlorn a sight as Rei could ever remember seeing, was the three-year-old princess of Crystal Tokyo and of Japan. The girl's sadness was like a slap in the face to the priest. The child looked over her shoulder to see who had entered. She wasn't accomplished enough to disguise her disappointment._

"_Hi, Auntie Rei," Chibi-Usa mumbled. Rei crossed over to the bed._

"_Can't sleep, Muffin?" Rei asked. She sat down on the side of the bed. The child rolled over onto her back to face her visitor._

"_I'm trying," she offered. "I'm trying to be a big girl like Daddy wants." She didn't continue, but looked down with disappointment in herself._

"_Muffin, you know your Mom and Dad want to be here, don't you?" Rei offered, her hand resting gently on the girl's shoulder. "You know what's happening with the world. This border dispute with China is very delicate and the Chinese refuse to talk to anybody except your Mom. She and your Dad have to be there. She wants to be with you - - but other people need her, too."_

"_I know," Chibi-Usa replied with a fatality that should be unknown in the mind of a three-year-old child. She kept a calm, though sad, exterior, but Rei could sense the loneliness and heartache of the girl. Rei could feel tears welling in her eyes and flashback memories to those days long ago when her own mother had died and her father was too busy courting power to tend to her._

"_Muffin," Rei began, pausing to let the emotion clear out of her voice. "Would you like me to tell you a story?"_

"_You're not too busy?" Chibi-Usa asked, trying to conceal her hopefulness._

"_I'm never too busy for you," Rei smiled as a teardrop escaped and trickled down her cheek._

_Shifting on the bed so that she sat next to Chibi-Usa's head and shoulders, Rei searched her memory for something to enchant the little girl while the pink-topped tot snuggled against her._

"_OK, ready?" Rei asked. Chibi-Usa nodded, her red eyes filled with both expectation and gratitude. "Once there was a great king named Ryujin. He was a great and powerful dragon and he ruled over all the sea and all the creatures in the sea from his mighty palace under the water. He was a good king and just, but only to those who respected his power. To those foolish enough or arrogant enough to challenge him, he could be a terrible and unforgiving adversary. Ryujin had a daughter, Toyotama-Hime, who all considered the most beautiful woman any had ever seen."_

_She looked down to see the effect the story was having on the child. Chibi-Usa was listening with rapt attention, digesting and analyzing every word she said._

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><p>Jun sat at her computer station, trying to concentrate on the latest news out of Colombia. Since finding out her birth parents were Colombian, Jun had regularly followed the news streams out of the country as it rebuilt itself from years of disaster, oppression and neglect. But today's news was mundane and uninteresting. That was a good thing for Colombia, because mundane was a definite step up from disaster and oppression. But it didn't do much for her flagging interest.<p>

"If Jun-Jun is bored, she can always play 'dolly' with Palla-Palla," Palla-Palla offered from her doll house corner.

Jun didn't respond, but she did keep her disdainful expression hidden.

"That wasn't a nice thing to think!" huffed Palla-Palla.

"Stop reading my mind," sighed Jun.

"Princess Kagura says you're an old grumpy pants!" Palla-Palla replied, shaking her Princess Kagura doll at Jun.

"Princess Kagura should mind her own business," muttered Jun.

"And she says it's not her fault that Jun-Jun doesn't have a boyfriend!" Palla-Palla added petulantly.

"No, that's Jun-Jun's own fault," Jun frowned. "Seems like every guy I meet doesn't seem to measure up. I hate to say it, but I think Quad ruined me for other men. Or maybe I'm just too picky. What do you think, Palla-Palla?"

She swung her chair around and looked at her sister. Palla-Palla happily had a doll in each hand and was making them dance.

"Why am I asking you?" Jun sighed. Just then Ves walked in, dressed for one of her martial arts sessions and sweating like it had gone overtime. "You win or lose?"

"It was just practice," Ves shrugged. "What's up your ass?"

Jun sighed dramatically. "Cere is out with Hiroki. Hotaru and Yutaka are 'studying' together. And Usa and Helios are flying." She scowled. "You suppose we've already had our shot at love?"

"What, like me and Rudolfo?" Ves asked.

"Or me and Quad."

"Never knew what you saw in him."

Jun glared.

"Usagi-Mama says you can have more than one true love," Palla-Palla spoke up.

"Yeah, like Kino-Sensei," Ves added. "She was married once and now she's with Mizuno-Sensei."

"And Miss Minako-Ma'am was married a whole bunch of times," added Palla-Palla.

"So it's not like you've had your shot and now you gotta be celibate the rest of your life."

"What's 'celibate'?" Palla-Palla asked. Then, reading it on one of the other girl's minds, she put her hands to her mouth. Then she began giggling. "Palla-Palla is celibate!"

"Damn right, and it better stay that way," grunted Ves.

"I guess you're right, Ves," Jun shrugged. "I suppose there's another guy out there for me. I'm just tired of looking."

Suddenly Palla-Palla stood up. Jun and Ves looked over to her and saw a faraway look in her eyes and a solemn expression on her face.

"Hey, what's up?" Ves asked.

"Palla-Palla heard someone ask for help," the teen replied and headed for the door.

"I didn't hear anything," Jun responded. But Palla-Palla didn't stop, exiting the room. After glancing at each other, Jun and Ves scrambled to go after her.

Over the Crystal Tokyo palace, a majestic winged white horse soared through the brilliant blue sky. Astride the horse was a beautiful young woman, her long pink hair flowing behind her and her long bare legs clutching the shoulders of the great graceful beast. Her hands clutched the horse by its neck and those hands felt the pulse of the equine's veins as it climbed into the sky and then rode a wind current down toward the Earth.

"Your joy is quite infectious, Maiden," Pegasus thought to his rider.

"Gods, this is so much more fun when I'm not being a mope!" Usa exclaimed. The wind rushed across her face and through her hair. She threw one hand up and arched back. Pegasus angled his wings and swept back up into the sky. The couple climbed back up into the sky, then came down in a circular spiral.

"It is gratifying to know that you are once more capable of joy," Pegasus thought to her. "You so easily carry burdens upon you that are often not yours to shoulder. I love to see you with the light in your eyes and a smile upon your face. This is the way you should always be, in my opinion."

"Then I just have to spend more time around you," Usa giggled.

"Are you tiring?" the equine asked silently.

"Are you kidding? This is almost as good as sex!" Usa exclaimed. Then she grew a perverse smile. The teen leaned in and pressed her lips up to the winged horse's ear. "Almost."

Pegasus glanced back at her and if it was possible for a horse to leer . . .

And then Usa stiffened for a moment. She relaxed instantly, but her hand went up to her forehead.

"Maiden?" Pegasus asked with concern.

"We need to land," she told him.

Without question, Pegasus angled down and came to a soft landing on the aeropad atop the palace. Waiting there were Palla-Palla, Jun and Ves. Usa dismounted and brought her hand up to her temple again. Then Palla-Palla caught her attention. The girl was staring at her.

"You heard it, too, didn't you, Princess," Palla-Palla said. Pegasus changed back into Helios and his hands grasped Usa by her shoulders to steady her.

"Then it wasn't a hallucination?" Usa asked. Palla-Palla shook her head.

"What's going on?" Ves demanded.

"I," Usa began. "Someone was calling me - - asking for my help - - our help." She frowned at the memory. "At least I think that's what it was."

Without warning, Usa headed for the aeropad entrance to the palace. Everyone moved to follow her.

"I've got to talk to Aunt Rei about this," Usa declared.

Inside the shrine built into the palace, Rei Hino conducted her trade and calling. When Usa had told her what had happened, the priest immediately took her hand and led the teen to a room within the shrine. In the center of the bare room was an ancient blackened fire box cast of iron. Rei built a fire within the metal pit and sat down before it. She instructed Usa to sit to her right and Palla-Palla to sit to her left. Jun and Ves were allowed to stay in the room under the admonition that they not speak or act in any way. They agreed, Ves reluctantly, and watched the priest take the hands of the two girls and instruct them to take the hand of each other.

Rei's head bowed and she began mumbling prayers that none of the others could quite make out. After a few moments, Usa bowed her head as well. Palla-Palla just stared ahead, looking at nothing in particular. At once the lights in the room seemed to dim until the strongest light was the fire burning in the center. Its light cast odd shadows onto the faces of the three ringing it. Unaffected, Rei continued to chant. Suddenly Ves tensed up.

"I heard something," she whispered, anxiously scanning the room. Jun gestured for quiet and Ves nodded, but still continued to shift her eyes warily.

The three sitting around the fire began to take more shallow breaths. Palla-Palla continued to stare blankly. Jun swallowed. It was like the teen's spirit had abandoned her body. Momentarily Palla-Palla opened her mouth, as if to speak, then hesitated.

"Speak," Rei said distantly. "We will hear you out."

"I seek the champion, Sailor Moon," Palla-Palla said in a voice not entirely her own. "I seek the Princess Usagi." Ves started to lunge for Palla-Palla, but Jun held her back.

"I'm here," Usa replied curiously.

"I speak for another," the entity said through Palla-Palla. "I ask on behalf of Urusham, mightiest of the Village By The River, to travel to his world and aid him. He is on a quest for truth and justice, a quest that could cost him his life and the lives of all in the village."

"Of course, I'm willing to help," Usa replied softly. "But why me? How does someone of your world know of me?"

"I sought out the counsel of the Great Spirits and they told me of you. For among them great are the tales of the legendary warrior of love, Sailor Moon," Palla-Palla transmitted. "She who traveled the universe spreading peace. She who fought on behalf of the oppressed and the powerless. She who defeated Beryl and Metallia, who put to route Pharaoh 90, who bested Nehelenia and even defeated the mighty Galaxia herself..."

"Oh," Usa murmured, unable to keep the disappointment out of her voice. "You want my Mom."

Palla-Palla was silent for a beat. "My apologies for offending you," she said. "Are you not Sailor Moon?"

"I'm not THAT Sailor Moon," Usa replied.

"But the power I sense from you," Palla-Palla said with confusion. "The message I sent was for the great Sailor Moon. If you received it, then you are the one I seek. Please do not hold my lack of knowledge against our Urusham. He is in need of your power and skill. I fear that if you do not aid him, he will act alone and perish from the attempt."

With that, the door to the room opened. Rei sagged and the lights seemed to return to normal.

"What's going on in here?" Queen Serenity asked.

Rei shook her head. "I'm sorry. I've lost him."

"Mom!" fumed Usa. Ves ran up and supported Palla-Palla.

"I sensed a presence in the palace!" Serenity shot back. "How was I supposed to know not to come in? And what were you doing anyway?"

"Someone was trying to ask for my help!" fussed Usa. "We were trying to communicate with him. But now the connection is broken and we don't even know where it was from!"

"Well, I'm sorry!" Serenity shot back. "Rei?"

"I was just boosting the signal," Rei replied, rubbing her temple.

"Palla-Palla knows where Mr. Magic Man was calling from," Palla-Palla spoke up. She still seemed a little spent and Ves protectively supported her.

"Do you think you could lead us there if we used Sailor Teleport?" Usa asked her. The teen responded with a nod that petered out from fatigue. "OK, why don't you rest up and we'll start out when you're feeling better."

"So we're going to help this guy?" Ves asked. "Even though we don't know nothing about him?"

"Aunt Rei, did you sense whether he was sincere?" Usa turned to the priest.

Rei sighed. "I didn't sense any deception," she replied measuredly. "But it really works better if I can make eye contact. Don't take it as guaranteed."

Everyone could see a moment of indecision cross the face of The Princess. They could see she was considering the possibility of this being a lure or deception of some sort. Suddenly the Queen reached out and seized her daughter's hands.

"If someone needs Sailor Moon's help," Serenity said with conviction, "and if your instincts say you should help them, then you should help them. That's the first, best reason for having the abilities you have."

Pride seemed to swell in the breast of The Princess.

"OK, Mom," Usa nodded.

"Just," Serenity continued, biting her lip, "please be careful. You know how much I worry about you!"

Usa rolled her eyes.

"Well, you almost managed a mature gesture," sighed Rei.

"You be quiet, Rei Hino!" fumed the Queen.

As The Princess left the room and her mother followed her, reminding her about every precaution there was to take, Jun began slowly walking toward the door. Ves had already carried Palla-Palla out and Rei was dousing the fire in the fire pit.

"Well, once more into the line of fire," Jun commented to no one in particular. "I wonder what this 'Urusham' looks like. It'd be nice if he was gorgeous."

"A word of advice from someone who has done this a time or two," Rei commented as she began cleaning the fire pit. "Concern yourself less with what this man looks like and concentrate on accomplishing your mission with maximum success and minimal casualties."

"Yes, Hino-Sensei," Jun replied. But it didn't stop her from wondering.

Continued in Chapter 2


	2. Journey To Akalah

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 2: "Journey To Akalah"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

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><p>Haruka Tenoh leaned against the bedroom door, her head cocked so she could listen without actually pressing her ear to the door. Dissatisfied with what she heard, the woman rapped on the door twice.<p>

"I don't hear any studying going on in there!" she bellowed.

Satisfied that the message had been delivered, Haruka moved her lanky frame back to the sofa and sat down to resume watching vid. Silently Michiru Kaioh moved up behind the woman and swatted the back of Haruka's head with her hand.

"What was that for?" Haruka exclaimed angrily.

"Haruka, leave them alone," Michiru responded in a tone that expected to be obeyed. "They have so little time to spend with each other anymore. Don't spoil it by being an overbearing 'Daddy'."

"I'm not overbearing!" Haruka grumped. "I'm concerned."

"I'm concerned, too - - that you're being overbearing," Michiru sighed. "Haruka, remember what it was like when we were that age?"

"Yeah. That's why I'm concerned."

Michiru scowled.

"Fine, give me that look," Haruka huffed. "When she comes to us six weeks pregnant, I'll let you handle it." Haruka dug herself deeper into the sofa. "Wouldn't be worried so much if she'd have found a nice girl."

Inside the room Michiru usually used for a studio, Hotaru and Yutaka had broken their intense study of each other's mouths when Haruka knocked. Once the noise had died down, the two returned to kissing. Their intentions had actually been studying, for Yutaka had a big exam coming in his engineering class and Hotaru could always use more practice in disease recognition.

But it had been so long. Their schedules rarely synchronized anymore and the time away had only increased the longing each one had for the other. So soon they were touching, and touching led to hand-holding. That led to thumbs rubbing on the backs of hands and fingers lightly skimming up arms. And before they knew it their breath was intermingling and diseases and structural physics were forgotten.

"Yutaka, I've missed you so much," Hotaru sighed as they broke for air. "Passing you in the hall and the occasional lunch isn't enough."

"I know," he murmured, then sought out her mouth again. "I'm trying to graduate as fast as I can."

"I want you so bad," Hotaru said, the frustration dripping from her words.

"Me, too," Yutaka exclaimed lustily. "But your dad is right outside."

"Yeah," Hotaru groaned. "We really should get some studying done."

"We should," Yutaka agreed.

And they sought out each other's mouth again. And with that, her senshi communicator sounded.

"Ohhhhhh," moaned Hotaru. She engaged the communicator. "Yes, Usa."

"You been running?" Usa said over the communicator.

"No. Why?"

"Well, you're all flushed," Usa told her. "And you sound out of breath."

"N-No," Hotaru replied, feeling her cheeks begin to burn.

Smirking devilishly, Yutaka reached behind Hotaru and ran his finger up her spine. Hotaru stiffened and choked back a squeal.

"Yutaka, stop it!" she hissed. When she looked back at the communicator, she saw a knowing Cheshire grin on her best friend's face.

"Aw, now I feel bad," Usa smirked.

"Do we have Sailor business?" Hotaru asked, trying to redirect the conversation.

"Afraid so," Usa replied. "Stop by my place so I can tell you what's going on."

"I'll be there," Hotaru nodded and switched off. "I'm sorry, Yutaka."

"No helping it," he shrugged. Hotaru got up to leave, but he caught her by the hand. "Come back safe, huh?"

Hotaru smiled, then leaned in and kissed him. When they parted, she tousled his black hair and then scampered out of the room. As Yutaka gathered his study material, he heard Hotaru in the next room.

"Mama! Papa! I've got Sailor business! Don't wait up!"

"Hey, how come you're so flushed?" demanded Haruka.

"PAPA!" fumed Hotaru. Yutaka smiled to himself.

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><p>In the quarters the Asteroid Senshi shared, Jun was bringing Cere up to speed on what had happened while she was away. Ves sat to the side while Palla-Palla was in her bedroom sleeping after her exertion earlier.<p>

"So wait a minute," Cere said, waving her hand. "We don't know anything about this guy. We don't know who he's up against. Or why they're fighting. Or even where they're fighting? And we're just going to roll in and put everything right?"

"About the size of it," Jun replied. She sympathized with Cere's skepticism. "We got cut off before we could get more details."

"And has anybody considered the possibility that this is some giant hoax and they're trying to lure us there so they can eat our brains?"

"Hino-Sensei said she felt that the person who contacted us was sincere," Jun told her. "Although she said she couldn't be sure." She thought a moment. "And he might not even be a person."

"But she's just going to go charging in?" Cere gaped.

"Hey, if it turns out to be a set up, we just kick their asses and go home," Ves shrugged.

"And what if we can't?" Cere asked pointedly.

"Then I'll give him indigestion going down," Ves replied belligerently. "What's with all these questions? You're not still scared, are you?"

"Of course I'm scared!" hissed Cere. "Anybody with a brain would be - - which lets you out, I suppose!"

"Hey, Cere, if you're still not up to it, sit this one out," Jun offered. "I'm sure the Princess will understand."

"I'm sure she would," Cere whispered. "But that won't make me feel any less guilty if you guys do end up getting eaten."

"Well I'm glad you've got your head on straight enough to know what's important," Ves interjected. "But if you're going to be a liability, though, maybe you better sit this one out. I got enough on my hands looking out for Palla-Palla."

"You don't have to look out for me," Cere told her.

"Then you're going?" Ves asked.

"I'll - - let you know."

"Fair enough," Jun responded, cutting off any reply Ves might make. "We're waiting for Palla-Palla to get rested up, so you don't have to decide right now." Jun leaned in. "No pressure."

"Yeah," Ves added as contritely as was possible for her. "No pressure."

"Yeah," Cere mumbled as she started the deep breathing exercises Dr. Mizuno had showed her. "Noooo pressure."

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><p>"You're sure you're up to this now?" Sailor Moon asked as she and her senshi made their way up to the palace aeropad where they planned to make their teleport jump to the planet of Akalah. "We can wait if you're still tired."<p>

"Thank you very much, Princess," Pallas beamed. "But Pallas feels all better. She got a nice beddy-bye, and she got to watch Yumi-chan and Bun-Bun, and she had a big bowl of Sugar Bombs with lots of delicious milk!"

"What was the old saying?" Ceres leaned over to Juno. "Whatever doesn't kill you will make you stronger? Well that would sure kill me." Juno smirked.

"And I'm glad you chose to come, too, Ceres," Sailor Moon offered. "We're that much stronger with you."

"It's OK," Ceres shrugged. She was low-key. "I chose to stay with the group instead of retire. Wouldn't mean much if I ducked the first mission after." She glanced at Pallas. "Besides, SOMEBODY wouldn't take 'no' for an answer."

Pallas gave her a smile that wasn't quite angelic.

"Everybody else ready to go?" Sailor Moon inquired of the group. She received a general assent.

The group emerged onto the windy aeropad. Sailor Moon immediately groaned. Waiting for them were her parents, along with the other elders.

"Is it OK with you guys if we teleport from over here?" Sailor Moon muttered. Saturn nudged her in the back.

"Come on," she whispered with delicate maliciousness. "Face it like a true champion."

Dreading the scene her mother was about to make, Sailor Moon approached. But the Princess received a surprise.

"Whatever this situation turns out to be," Serenity said, grasping her daughter's hands, "it's already in the best hands it could be in."

Sailor Moon gaped. "That's it? You're not going to ask me about my toothbrush?"

"I'm TRYING to be mature," Serenity said in a low hiss.

"Wow. Now I have seen everything."

"Brat."

Sailor Moon smirked, then leaned in and hugged her mother. Serenity passed her off to Endymion.

"The hardest part isn't letting go," he told her as he enveloped her in his arms and she found her familiar comfort zone. "The hardest part is waiting for you to come back."

"Don't worry too much, Pop," she whispered in his ear. "It'll make you gray. We've got this."

He gave her a smile as they parted. Then something tickled her outermost senses and she turned around. Emerging from the palace was Helios. Sailor Moon cut the distance between them as he approached.

"There you are!" she remarked. "I stopped by your quarters earlier to say good-bye, but you weren't there."

"I was in a special place, Maiden," Helios replied, "preparing. I would come with you, if you will have me."

"I would never turn you away, Helios," Sailor Moon told him reverently. She easily fell against him as his arm slithered around her waist. Together they approached the group.

"Helios coming with us?" Saturn asked. Sailor Moon nodded. "We're glad to have you along, Helios."

"Everybody ready?" Sailor Moon asked. Everyone nodded.

The senshi joined hands in a circle around Helios. Pallas closed her eyes and began concentrating on homing in on their destination. Sailor Moon glanced back at her parents. Though Serenity was trying to hide it, the Queen was very nervous. Sailor Moon grinned to herself and then shifted her mind to the task at hand.

Air began to swirl around the six young women. It picked up until skirts and hair were blowing and the air itself was a whirlwind that threatened to engulf them. At the whirlwind's crescendo, the six young women shouted in unison "SAILOR TELEPORT"! Spurred on by the call, the whirlwind swallowed them up. When it died away, Sailor Moon and her band were gone.

"Please come back to me," Serenity whispered.

The transport bubble dissipated and left the senshi momentarily disoriented. Everyone looked around. The sky was an aqua in color, rather than the blue of Earth. Shining in the sky was a sun about the size of Earth's, but with an orange tint to the yellow. To two sides of them were thick forests with tall trees resembling pines and maples. A river could be seen on the other side of a clearing to another side, the clearing covered in a sandy colored stalk plant resembling wheat. Before them was a mountainous region with a cave at the foot of the rocky outgrowth.

"Sort of reminds me of the north of Japan around Fuji," Sailor Moon commented. "Air's a little thin. It must be really bad at the top of those ranges." A thought struck Sailor Moon right then. "I suppose we should have checked for a breathable atmosphere before we landed, huh?"

"Ya' think?" Juno asked sarcastically.

"Fortunately Mizuno-Sensei thought of that and gave me a portable atmospheric monitor before we left," Saturn said, holding a small computerized device in her hand. "You're right, the atmosphere is a little more nitrogen-heavy than Earth. We may have a little trouble breathing during intense exertion."

"Hopefully we won't have to do anything more exerting than find this mystery guy," Ceres said. She noticed Vesta looking around warily. "Do you sense something?"

"Not yet," Vesta replied. "I'm just trying to get a gauge on the local wildlife - - see if there's any immediate threat."

"Good idea," Sailor Moon told her. "We want as few surprises as possible."

All of a sudden, Ceres bolted from the group. Her movement drew the attention of the others and they could see why: Pallas had wandered over to a bush at the foot of the mountainous area. It was a thick, round bush filled with crimson long-petaled flowers streaked with yellow. Pallas innocently headed for it, enchanted by the bush's beauty. But when she was just a foot away from the bush, Ceres, seized her arm and jerked her back from it.

"WHY DID YOU DO THAT?" Pallas howled petulantly. "Pallas just wanted to sniff the pretty flowers!"

"Don't approach plants on alien worlds unless you know what they're capable of!" bellowed Ceres angrily.

"Easy, Ceres," Juno admonished. "She didn't mean any harm."

"No, SHE didn't," Ceres snapped. "Look, these may be alien plant life, but I can still sense their spirits and their thinking patterns. This is a carnivorous plant. It lures life forms to it with those pretty flowers and alluring scents. Then when the animal life gets close enough, the plant engulfs it and devours it!"

The other senshi stared in amazement, while Helios looked on unruffled. Pallas, though, continued to be mystified.

"Look, there's another bush over there," Ceres pointed. "See that bird approaching it?"

Yards away, a brown bird with a long bill hovered near one of the plants. It hesitated for several moments, then dipped its bill into the flower and tried to retreat immediately. But the bush was too fast. The leaves lunged and engulfed the bird, leaving no trace of it.

Pallas's eyes grew wide. She whirled on the other bush and stomped her foot. "Bad flowers!" she shouted.

"Maybe we should find the person who contacted us," Saturn suggested.

"Good idea," Sailor Moon nodded. "Pallas, can you sense where he is? Maybe make contact telepathically?"

"Pallas will try," the senshi nodded. She pressed her hands to her temples and closed her eyes. Vesta protectively lingered near her.

"Sense any other plants we need to look out for?" Juno asked Ceres.

"Not around here," Ceres replied. Then she stared at the forest nearby. That drew everyone's attention. "Those trees - - they're not like Earth's trees. They're . . ."

"They're what?" Juno asked.

"More arrogant," Ceres judged. "They're not a threat to us, but - - they're so full of themselves! I asked them if they knew Urusham, and they just sneered. That's so disappointing."

Sailor Moon turned to Helios. "Do you have any sense of this man we're looking for? Have you seen his dreams?"

"I am familiar with all who dream, Maiden," Helios told her. "It does not, however, give me insight into where they are when they are awake. I can tell you his name is Katyr and he controls energy some might call magic."

"Energy some might call magic?" Sailor Moon repeated skeptically.

"Indeed," Helios replied with the hint of a smile. "Some might call the energy you control 'magic', Maiden."

"It's a good thing you're cute," Sailor Moon muttered.

Without warning, a flock of black birds numbering several hundred bolted from the shelter of the nearby woods. The birds were two feet long with wingspans of four feet, their feathers black as ink. Despite their size, the birds had enviable speed. They sped across the clearing and over the river and were gone from sight in seconds.

"That's not good," Vesta said warily.

"Why not?" Saturn asked.

"Those birds were roosting in those trees. They were safe," Vesta explained as she scanned the area. "The only thing that could make them bolt like that was if they sensed a predator coming - - a deadly one. One they didn't want any part of."

"OK, look sharp everyone," Sailor Moon told the group as she looked around. "Pallas, any luck contacting Katyr?"

"No, Princess," Pallas reported.

Just then, a shadow passed over them. Looking up into the aqua sky, they all saw a huge creature. It seemed to resemble a shaggy wolf in the body, but had razor talons like a bird of prey and its nose curved to a point much like the tiangus of ancient Chinese mythology. The creature also had a pair of mighty wings that when extended could cover twenty meters. Everyone stared up at it in awe.

The creature banked, its arc taking it over the river several hundred yards away. By the time everyone realized it was coming around to land, its descent aimed at them, there was no place to go. The creature landed lightly in the clearing, then lowered its head almost to the ground and let loose with an ear-piercing bellow aimed directly at the senshi.

Continued in Chapter 3


	3. Quest Of Ages

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 3: "Quest Of Ages"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>"<em>Auntie Rei," young Small Lady asked and the priest paused the telling of her story indulgently, "how could Toyotami-Hime be a woman if her papa was a dragon?"<em>

"_Well, aren't you smart to notice that," Rei smiled. Small Lady returned the smile timidly. "The reason is her father, Ryujin, was a great and powerful king who could have a human daughter if he chose. And his daughter wasn't just an ordinary woman. And it's Toyotama-Hime."_

"_Toyo-tama," Small Lady repeated. "But why would he want a human baby?"_

"_Who's telling this story?" Rei asked, an eyebrow cocked. Small Lady quieted, but couldn't quite wipe the smirk from her face. "Anyway, Toyotama-Hime was a beautiful woman, as beautiful as any man could name. She had long black hair, a demure face and bewitching eyes that were as green as jade. And she lived with her father in the great palace under the sea built of red and white coral."_

"_Like this palace?"_

"_Yes," Rei nodded. "Now on shore, there were two brothers named Hoori and Hoderi. Hoori was a strong and handsome man with long," and Rei thought a moment, "white hair and a pale complexion. Hoori was a hunter and legendary in his prowess. His brother was nice, too, but Hoori was considered the most handsome man in the village, perhaps all of Japan. _

"_One day, Hoori forced his brother to lend him his best fish-hook, for Hoderi was a fisherman of great fame. And, to Hoori's dismay, and Hoderi's, he lost the fish-hook in the sea. A great argument sprang up between the brothers. Hoderi refused Hoori's offer to replace the hook, for Hoderi believed that his hook was infused with a special spirit that allowed him to catch many fish."_

"_Brothers shouldn't fight," frowned Small Lady._

"_Brothers fight all the time," smiled Rei. "It's whether they can make up later that shows the strength of their character. And, since it was a debt of honor to his brother, Hoori finally agreed to swim to the bottom of the ocean and find the lost hook."_

"_How could he do that?" Small Lady asked skeptically._

"_He had big lungs," Rei replied playfully. Small Lady gave her a doubting look and the priest nearly broke up laughing._

* * *

><p>Sailor Vesta expelled a four-letter expletive under her breath. The great winged beast finished roaring at them and glared. Vesta and Saturn jumped in front of the others, Saturn's glaive at the ready. Sailor Moon was materializing the Moon Tier.<p>

"Fauna Assimilation - - um, Tyrannosaurus Rex!" Vesta coughed out. The senshi transformed into the towering killer dinosaur and the winged canine leaned back, momentarily defensive. "Back away slowly! Keep eye contact with it at all times! I'll grab it if it lunges for any of you!"

"Just be careful where you step!" Ceres bellowed. She and the others backed away as instructed, Saturn covering the group with her glaive poised.

The creature bellowed at Vesta, showing as many teeth as possible. Vesta could see that the gesture was a warning against attacking it, so she'd clearly gotten its attention. The senshi returned the warning with a shrill hiss of her own, the sound resembling a saw slicing through wood. The two titanic beasts faced each other, glaring malevolently and prepared for any attack. Vesta shifted and her tail nearly swept over Juno and Pallas. More venomous warnings were exchanged, the volume of the cries shaking the trees and the rocks of the mountain. But the longer the standoff lasted, the more Vesta became convinced that the creature wanted no part of a fight unless it was attacked.

Warily, Vesta moved one foot back, keeping a stance that could change direction instantly. The creature stared with unconcealed ill-will, but closed its mouth. After a few seconds, it leaned back and shoved into the air, spreading its giant wings and thrusting itself up into the sky. The creature looped once above them, then flew off to the west.

"That was close," Vesta said, returning to human form. "She was just establishing her territorial boundaries. If that thing had been hungry, she might have attacked in spite of me being there."

"Fortunately you speak her language," Juno sighed. Then she noticed Ceres taking deep breaths in and out. "You OK?"

"I'm handling it," Ceres told her. She continued her deep breathing.

"This isn't getting us any closer to finding the person who called us," Sailor Moon fussed.

"Sailor Pallas led us here for a reason," Helios concluded. "I suggest that the one we seek either is here or was here when he contacted you." He gestured to the cave at the base of the mountainous stretch. "Perhaps in there?"

At that moment, a figure emerged from the cave mouth. He was an older man, though still somewhat burly looking due to his broad shoulders and barrel chest. His hair was long and white, his features lined and weathered from age and exposure, and his eyes were like pale sapphires. A thick hooded robe, gathered at the waist by a crude belt, draped his body.

As he walked, he seemed to be guided by an inner spirit rather than his eyes. His gaze would shift from one senshi to another even as he walked straight and unhesitant. When he faced Sailor Moon, that's when his head stopped moving. He continued to approach, confident and unhurried. When he reached a certain distance, though, Saturn stepped in his path. The man stopped.

"You are Sailor Moon," he said, looking over Saturn's shoulder as if she weren't there. The wind blew strands of his white hair across his face. "I am Katyr. It was I who asked you to come."

"How long have you been standing there watching us from that cave?" Saturn asked suspiciously. A slight grin spread over Katyr's face.

"I wished to observe you against the power of the merwyn," Katyr admitted. "I wanted to see if you were equal to the legends of your mother, since you admit that you are not the original Sailor Moon."

"And if that think had killed us?" Juno asked with some annoyance.

"Then I would have searched for aid elsewhere," Katyr replied without emotion.

"That's not nice!" Pallas protested.

"The world can be a cruel place," Katyr observed. "If you take offense at my attitude, I apologize. Again, I pray that you do not hold anything I do against Urusham or the village."

"Where is this Urusham?" Sailor Moon asked. "I'd like to meet him."

"He is away," Katyr told her, "and that is the reason why I asked for your assistance. Urusham fights a battle that he cannot win and that I cannot aid him with, save to ask for the help of others. And he is too focused on his quest to recognize the odds against him."

"Maybe you'd better start at the beginning," Sailor Moon advised him. Katyr bowed to her.

"Urusham seeks to reclaim his mother from the castle of his grandfather," Katyr explained. "The Prince has not known the touch of his mother since she birthed him. She has been in the castle of her father since that day."

"Was he raised by his father?" Saturn asked.

"No," Katyr replied with some sadness. "His father committed a heinous act and left the child in the care of his brother while he did penance and sought to dispel his ignorance. It was his brother who raised the boy and made him into the sterling figure of a man he is today.

"But the boy's foster father died and left Urusham alone. Now a man, he decided to try to reconnect with his mother. But he was rebuffed by her. She refuses to meet with him at all and her father, King Toren, sides with her, perhaps holding the sins of the father against the son."

"Well that's not right," Juno scowled, recalling her own past. "Urusham had nothing to do with what his father did."

"The rejection did not set well with Urusham, either," Katyr continued. "So he has taken up arms against them, seeking to force a reunion with his mother, Princess Mellebet. I tried to dissuade him, but his mind is set."

"This King Toren sounds like a real piece of work," Vesta assessed.

"He is not evil," Katyr shook his head. "But he loves his daughter, perhaps too much, and he does not easily forgive being wronged, again perhaps too much. In many ways, he is like his grandson - - benevolent, but proud."

"And pride can be the tinder that can start a war burning," commented Helios.

"In my studies, I have learned a little of what some might deem magic, enough to search the heavens for someone to aid Urusham. I fear for his safety in challenging his mother's wishes and I fear for the safety of the village yon should war erupt. That led me to you. Will you help, Sailor Moon?"

Sailor Moon glanced at Sailor Pallas. The senshi thought a message to Sailor Pallas, asking the telepath whether she could tell whether Katyr was being dishonest.

"Pallas doesn't think Mr. Katyr-Sir is fibbing," Pallas thought back to her. "But he didn't tell you everything."

"Like what?"

"Like big old King Toren is one of those big doggies with wings," Pallas thought back. Everyone noticed Sailor Moon grow wide-eyed.

"King Toren is one of those winged creatures?" Sailor Moon exclaimed out loud. The rest of the group turned to her in shock.

"Like the one that attacked us?" gasped Ceres. Pallas nodded her head vigorously.

"Actually," Katyr interjected unemotionally, "the merwyn you encountered was the Princess Mellebet herself. Her father is much bigger."

"And when exactly were you going to get around to mentioning this?" demanded Ceres.

"Did you deem it important?" Katyr asked. Ceres smacked her forehead with her hand. "Forgive me if I am unaccustomed to your ways. I assumed that the challenge itself would be sufficient for a band of warriors like yourselves."

"We try to avoid conflict whenever possible," Sailor Moon told him.

"Then," Katyr ventured, "you will not help?"

"I didn't say that," Sailor Moon shook her head.

"We gonna take him on?" Vesta inquired. "Now that I seen one and know its name, I think I can change into one of those merwyns."

"I didn't say that either. Maybe there's a way to head off this confrontation before it happens. Katyr, can you lead us to King Toren's castle."

"That would not be a good idea," Katyr demurred. Instead he held out his closed hand. When he opened it, a small point of green light hovered above his palm. "This beacon will take you to King Toren's castle. Follow it. Should you wish to return here, it will guide you back."

"OK," Sailor Moon replied cautiously. "You do understand that we're going to prevent a conflict, not escalate one, right?"

"I bear no grudge against King Toren," Katyr replied. "I wish only to spare Urusham pain and suffering. If you succeed in preventing this, no matter how you do so, I will be in your debt."

"As long as that's understood," Sailor Moon nodded. "Helios?"

"I anticipated your request, Maiden," Pegasus thought to her.

"Knew I could count on you," Sailor Moon smiled. "Vesta?"

"I know, transportation," sighed Vesta. "Fauna Assimilation - - Pegasus!"

"Horsie!" squealed Pallas. With a leg up from Juno, Pallas mounted Vesta's back and began cackling happily. The others joined her on Vesta while Saturn and Sailor Moon climbed aboard Pegasus. Spreading their wings, the two equines pushed off into the air and began following the beacon of green light.

"Hey, Ceres, you putting on weight?" Vesta asked, glancing back at the senshi balanced just above her back haunches.

"Just fly and no smart remarks! You're not qualified to make them!" snorted Ceres. Vesta's plan had worked. Ceres had momentarily forgotten about her fear.

The path taken by the green beacon led the senshi over the tops of the trees making up the forest by the river. Sailor Moon studied the topography of the area as they flew, trying to familiarize herself with the land. Her knowledge of strategy told her it was something good to know should she have to make new plans on the fly. As they flew, the sun above them projected their shadows onto the tops of the trees. When thin patches of the forest passed under them, flocks of birds would dart from cover and race off in the opposite direction they traveled.

"We seem to be scaring the local wildlife," Saturn observed. She had her left arm around Sailor Moon's waist while her right carried her glaive.

"Maybe they see our shadow and think we're those merwyn," Sailor Moon suggested. "Those things would make anybody nervous." She scowled. "I wish I had a way to find out whether there's anything else on this planet that's a threat."

On the other flying equine, trailing the Princess with an eye toward making certain they weren't attacked from the rear, the Asteroids were speculating on the same thing.

"So far we've only met the aggressive predators," Vesta told the others to try to calm their fears. "It don't mean every species on this planet is aggressive. Take those birds, for example."

"But isn't the 'flight over fight' response inherent in most species, even predators?" Ceres argued. "For all we know, those birds sneak up on people at night and drink their blood."

"Maybe it's just me," Vesta said. "I can usually distinguish between predator and prey. Those birds are low on the food chain. I wouldn't worry about them unless I was in insect form."

"So where are we on the food chain?" Juno asked.

"Well from the look of those merwyns, we ain't number one," Vesta surmised. "But there must not be too many of them. Flying out in the open, covering this much ground and we haven't run into any yet? Probably not too many of them. Maybe it's a dying species."

"Or maybe they all live with King Toren," Ceres added fatally.

"So what do you think the Princess's plan is?" Juno wondered. "Just roll up to the door and knock and try to sweet talk King Toren into letting Urusham see his mom?"

"Probably," Ceres sighed. "If we're lucky, he'll just slam the door in our face."

"Why wouldn't Princess Mellebet-Ma'am talk to Mister Urusham-Sir?" Pallas asked. "Doesn't she know he's her sonny boy?"

"Might depend on what the great crime his father committed was," Vesta answered, staring straight ahead. "Some people hold grudges."

Pallas grew melancholy. "Maybe his mommy just doesn't want to see him - - like Pallas's mommy doesn't want to see her."

Pallas felt Juno wrap her arms around from behind and hug the teen. It made her feel a little better.

The trees cleared. Surrounded by a large clearing bisected by the river was a huge castle. The castle was made of hewn marble with four spires vaguely resembling minarets reaching high into the sky. The walls were two hundred and fifty feet high, ending in turrets at the four corners, and the entrance was fifty feet high. The marble walls gleamed in the sunlight and reflected the light down on the waters of the river, which passed around either side of the structure to create a moat. The base of the castle was surrounded by trees and shrubs nearly coming up to the bank. For a mile in every direction was clearing, with only grasses growing on the land.

"I'll say one thing," Ceres commented. "Toren's got an eye for style."

"Vesta, the Princess is motioning us down," Juno said. Vesta moved to follow and landed on the bank opposite the door.

"Interesting," Sailor Moon murmured, dissecting the problem mentally. "No drawbridge. No bridge of any kind."

"If King Toren is as Katyr said a merwyn," Pegasus thought, "he would not need a bridge to cross the river."

"And there's not much room over there to fly everyone across and be able to land," Vesta added. "Those bushes come almost up to the bank."

"I can make us a bridge," Juno volunteered. "I can construct it out of water from the river. I'll just bond the water molecules so that there's enough tensile strength to support us."

"How do you know that's water?" Ceres asked warily. "We're on an alien world. How do you know that's not hydrochloric acid?"

"Because I can sense water," Juno answered. "That's water. Water is pretty much a constant for having carbon-based planetary life forms." She stepped to the edge of the bank opposite the castle door. "Aqua Initiation!"

Water surged up from the river and began to spread out to each bank. As it began to solidify, the center opened up to allow the river to flow beneath it. With a little effort, Juno constructed a bridge between them and the door to the castle. When she was finished, Sailor Moon nodded and stepped onto the bridge.

"Sailor Moon," Saturn said, holding her friend back. "Maybe you better let me go first."

"It's all right, Saturn," Sailor Moon assured her. "I'm the one who's going to be doing the negotiating. I..."

"YOUR PRESENCE IS NOT WELCOMED, HUMAN!" a voice boomed from inside the castle. "BE GONE FROM MY HOME!"

"I am Sailor Moon of Earth!" Sailor Moon called up to the looming door. "I only wish to talk to you!"

"I HAVE NO DESIRE TO TALK TO YOU, HUMAN!" the voice bellowed. "AND I KNOW NOT OF THIS 'EARTH'! GO BACK TO YOUR MASTER, URUSHAM, AND TELL HIM TO LEAVE MY DAUGHTER ALONE BEFORE I KILL HIM!"

"Urusham is not my master!" Sailor Moon yelled back. "I only want to stop this conflict so that both sides can survive this without getting hurt! I can help you find common ground and avoid more fighting if you'll only let me!"

"AND WHY WOULD YOU INTERCEDE IN MATTERS THAT DO NOT CONCERN YOU?" the voice came back. "WHAT BENEFIT DO YOU GAIN FROM IT?"

"Peace!" Sailor Moon yelled. "The mission of Sailor Moon is to bring peace to the universe! And that can only be achieved one conflict at a time!"

There was silence from the castle. Sailor Moon waited, even when her senshi began to wonder if King Toren had decided to just ignore them. Finally Sailor Moon walked out onto the water bridge that Juno was maintaining, headed for the door. She was half way across when the doors to the castle began to open. The two looming doors slowly opened out. Sailor Moon could see something was behind them.

It was a merwyn. And Katyr was right, it did make the one they encountered before look like a pup. The great beast looked down on Sailor Moon with large, suspicious gray eyes.

"SO, HUMAN," King Toren began, revealing fangs as tall as she was every time he spoke, "HOW DO YOU PROPOSE TO BRING PEACE TO THIS SITUATION?"

Continued in Chapter 4


	4. You Can't Force The Issue

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 4: "You Can't Force The Issue"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>"SO, HUMAN," King Toren began, revealing fangs as tall as she was every time he spoke, "HOW DO YOU PROPOSE TO BRING PEACE TO THIS SITUATION?"<p>

Vesta was about to transform, but Saturn raised her arm to bar the senshi from acting further. She angled her head toward Vesta, without once taking her eyes off of Sailor Moon.

"Let her try," Saturn said. "If we act too soon, we may spook him and destroy any hope of him trusting us."

"Yeah," Vesta murmured. "I can see now he's not in attack mode."

"We talk," Sailor Moon proposed. "Try to work out a solution that's acceptable to all parties."

"THERE IS NOTHING TO TALK ABOUT!" King Toren replied, his voice booming over the countryside. "MY DAUGHTER HAS NO WISH TO SEE URUSHAM!"

"None?" Sailor Moon asked skeptically.

"YOU DOUBT MY WORD?" Toren rumbled.

"I don't doubt that's what you believe," Sailor Moon replied. "But beliefs can be colored by emotions to the point where what is believed is a distorted picture of what actually is."

"THERE IS NO MISTAKE!" Toren maintained.

"You want to protect your daughter," Sailor Moon persisted. "You love her and want to keep her from being hurt. You think that by keeping her separated from Urusham . . ."

"FROM HER OWN LIPS THIS CAME!" Toren snarled. "I CONFESS I REJOICED WHEN I HEARD THIS, FOR I CANNOT FORGIVE WHAT WAS DONE TO HER! BUT I DO NOT HOLD HER PRISONER! SHE HAS CHOSEN THIS PATH AND I WILL GLADLY ABIDE BY HER WISHES! TELL THIS TO URUSHAM IF YOU SEE HIM! NOW GO!"

"And if her emotions are coloring her decisions?" Sailor Moon kept up. "Are the sins of the father to be avenged upon the son?"

"AND WHAT OF YOUR EMOTIONS, CHAMPION OF PEACE?" Toren asked. "DOES YOUR NEED TO IMPOSE YOUR WILL UPON THIS SITUATION COLOR YOUR PERCEPTIONS? IF YOU WISH PEACE SO MUCH, FIND URUSHAM AND MAKE HIM STAY AWAY! THEN THERE WILL BE THE PEACE YOU SO CRAVE!"

"If you'll just let me talk to your daughter . . .!" Sailor Moon cried. But the door slammed in her face. As she burned with anger and frustration, Helios came up behind her and gently grasped her upper arms.

"You demonstrated praiseworthy tact and restraint, Maiden," Helios offered. "Your effort does you proud."

"Didn't work," Sailor Moon scowled, "so it doesn't matter." The pair returned to the bank, where they were joined by the other senshi.

"So what do we do now? Bust in?" Vesta asked.

"I think that would do more harm than good," Sailor Moon replied. "I'd really like to talk to Princess Mellebet. Maybe she'll be more willing to listen to reason than her dad."

"I don't know if that's going to happen anytime soon," Ceres reasoned. "What we ought to do is find out what was done to her to cause such hatred. Depending on the offense, it might not be something that can be smoothed over."

"Ceres is right," Juno nodded. "Until we know what happened, we're just trying to plug a leak in a dam with our eyes closed."

"And we should try to get the story from Urusham," Ceres added. "I don't think we can get the whole story from Katyr."

"I'd stay here and wait for Princess Mellebet, but I don't know how often she leaves the castle. Waiting could take days," Sailor Moon mused. "Finding Urusham might be our best option right now." She scowled. "Only how do we find him?"

"Lookee!" gasped Pallas. She pointed up into the air. Just above them, the green light burst was pulsing. After watching it for a few moments, Sailor Moon extended her hand up to it. The beacon floated down to her palm and she brought it in to her.

"Can you help us find Urusham?" Sailor Moon asked. The light burst pulsed. "Go," she said, extending her hand up. "We'll follow."

The pulse ascended from her hand and propelled itself toward the forest that bordered the open lands surrounding the castle. Without hesitation, Sailor Moon followed. With some trepidation, her senshi followed her.

The journey proved to be longer than any of them thought. The pulse led them into the forest, where the thick growth reduced the light from the sun. As a precaution, Vesta changed into a timber wolf in order to use her keener senses as an early warning against trouble. The path they followed led into a small clearing inside the thicket of trees. What greeted them was a surprising sight.

"Sailor Moon! Look!" shouted Saturn, pointing ahead.

In the clearing was a human man, his hair long and white, his frame cut and sturdy from years of training and exertion. He was naked save for a loin cloth of dark brown fur, leather boots and leather gauntlets that protected his wrists. Near him was a sword that had clearly seen many battles. The man lay on the ground, stunned. To his right and behind him was a merwyn, the beast's wings spread and a menacing growl emanating from its throat. Its eyes were burning with rage.

"You're going to have to get your meal somewhere else!" Ceres lunged forward. "Floral Stimulation!"

The limbs of a nearby tree began to grow. They reached down and plucked the merwyn off the ground, grasping the winged canine at the base of its wings. The creature snarled angrily and fought to get loose. But Ceres' control of the tree kept hold and rendered the merwyn defenseless.

"Let me down, assassins!" bellowed the merwyn.

"Hey, the doggie talks!" Pallas marveled.

The downed man reached for his sword. Juno headed for him to see if she could aid him. But a movement in the grasses caught Vesta's eye.

"Juno, stay back!" Vesta barked.

With the speed of an eye blink, a huge constrictor snake wrapped around the man's torso. Unable to use his sword, he quickly fell prey to the serpent. Easily twenty feet long in Sailor Moon's estimation, the brown and white snake began tightening around the man, pulling a gurgling grunt from his mouth. Saturn started forward, her glaive raised, but Sailor Moon held her back.

"No need to kill it if we don't have to," she told Saturn, summoning the Moon Tier. The Tier pointed at the snake's head, which was glaring warily at the senshi even as it crushed its prey. "Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!"

Pink energy flooded over the snake and its intended victim. The snake flinched at the touch of the energy. It resisted the caress of Sailor Moon's attack for as long as it could. But the serpent wasn't a match for the seductive power of Eternal Sailor Moon. The coils loosened from around the burly man. The snake went slack. It dreamily laid its head on the grass. But Sailor Moon's attack had worked too well, for the man in the limp coils was also in a stuporous haze.

"Pallas, try to pull that guy out with your mind power," Juno suggested.

Pallas nodded. "Beautiful Incantation!" she called out.

Invisible hands lifted the snake's body up and pulled the man away from it. It was difficult work, as the large man was more than Pallas was used to lifting. The strain was evident on her face. Once he was clear of the snake, Pallas set him down, then plopped onto the ground herself.

"Phew!" Pallas exclaimed, wiping her brow. "He was heavy!"

"Release me!" bellowed the merwyn. "If you so much as think to harm Urusham...!"

"Saturn, check him out," Sailor Moon ordered. Saturn moved to comply. "We have no intention of harming him. In fact, we've been looking for him. Don't worry, Saturn is only healing him." She turned to Ceres. "Let her go, Ceres."

"We thought you were attacking him," Ceres added, commanding the tree to let the merwyn go. The beast landed near the fallen Urusham, causing Saturn to flinch. But she made no move to attack.

"Who are you?" the merwyn demanded. "Why do you seek my Urusham? Answer the daughter of King Toren!"

"Daughter?" Sailor Moon exclaimed. "You're not Princess Mellebet!"

"And King Toren cannot have two daughters?" the merwyn glared. "You have not answered my question, stranger."

The other senshi looked to Sailor Moon for a cue on whether to hold or defend. Behind her, Helios signaled them to hold.

"I am Sailor Moon of Earth," she began. "I was brought here to - - well frankly, to keep Urusham from getting killed. A man named Katyr brought us here. . ."

"Katyr," scowled the merwyn. "Has he not done enough?"

"Uh, now I don't believe I got your name?" hinted Sailor Moon.

The beast stared at her. "Are you a queen on your world?"

"Not yet," Sailor Moon replied with some disdain. The merwyn smiled.

"That would explain your boldness and irreverence," the beast said. "I am Princess Akisham. Princess Mellebet is my sister," and a cloud seemed to pass over her for a moment, "and sire of Urusham."

"But," sputtered Juno, "you're a merwyn! He's human! How could she be his mother?"

"You allow your retainers to speak as if they are equals?" Akisham asked Sailor Moon, pointedly ignoring Juno.

"Ours is a society free of castes," Sailor Moon replied. "And I encourage the input of my friends."

"She raises an interesting point, Princess," Helios interjected politely. "Would it be impolite to ask how this is? We are strangers here, after all."

The question seemed distasteful to Akisham. But after a moment, she began to take on a glow. Then her body shrank in on itself, contracting until a human woman stood where the merwyn had been. She had long white hair falling down her back to her calves. Her face was very striking, almost feral in its beauty. Not a stitch of clothing adorned her and Sailor Moon caught herself wondering for a moment if Helios was staring.

"We of the royal line," Akisham said with haughty dignity, "can be either merwyn or human at our choosing. It is not an ability shared by all merwyn."

Stirring caught everyone's attention. Urusham was sitting up, supported by Saturn. Akisham quickly knelt by his side and leaned in with overt concern.

"Urusham Dearest, how badly are you hurt?" Akisham asked.

"Dearest?" Saturn murmured, a quizzical look on her face as she backed away. She glanced at Sailor Moon and got a quizzical look in return.

"I am better than I deserve to be," Urusham scowled. "The grass-crawler caught me while I was too focused on how to breech the castle. Were it not for your aid and . . ."

He stopped, looked up and focused on Sailor Moon for the first time. Attempting to rise, pushing the steadying hand of Akisham away, the man got to his feet. He easily stood seven feet tall, towering over even Sailor Moon herself. The man radiated physical prowess. His face was rough-hewed, but pleasant. His eyes locked on Sailor Moon.

"Whoa," Juno whispered. Pallas glanced at her and giggled.

"You," he said, pointing at Sailor Moon. "I felt - - a peace - - peace as I have not felt in a long, long time. Even as the grass-crawler held me, I suddenly felt as if I was at peace with the world and anything that might happen. It was you whispering to me, caressing my heart and my mind, was it not?" Akisham stared at Sailor Moon in shock.

"Just a little something I do to help people," Sailor Moon replied modestly. "I'm glad you're all right."

"Through the joyous cloud you placed in my mind, I heard that Katyr sent you to aid me," Urusham revealed.

"That's the plan," Sailor Moon answered, "although I'd like to settle this peacefully if that's possible. If you don't mind telling us the story, how were you separated from your mother?"

Sailor Moon instantly picked up on the angry scowl that crossed Akisham's face. For his part, Urusham looked down.

"I'm sorry if I bring up painful memories," Sailor Moon offered. "But knowing what happened might allow me to avoid a fight."

"I doubt you can succeed," Urusham replied, his mouth hard. "But I will tell you the tale. My father was a great hunter. While searching the forest for game, he chanced upon my mother in her human form. She warned him of impending danger, for a great felinitar was cornered and wounded and about to strike at him. Her warning allowed my father to sight the beast and slay it. In his gratitude, he invited her to his home and they shared a meal of the felinitar.

"My mother returned to my father's village days later, bearing a gift for him," Urusham continued. "Soon they fell in love and were married. Not long after, she began to bear - - me." Urusham paused. Though he tried to hide it, emotion had overtaken him.

"When it came time for my sister to give birth," Akisham took up the tale, "she warned his father not to look upon her until after she had delivered the child, for she had not told him that a merwyn was her true form. But being human, he could not do as asked and he looked in on her as she delivered Urusham." Resentment began to burn in Akisham's eyes. "He was horrified. He abandoned his family and left the village."

"That's not nice!" squeaked Pallas.

"My sister was angry and heartbroken," Akisham continued. "She abandoned Urusham and returned to King Toren, never to look upon him again."

"So that's the 'heinous' act Katyr spoke of," Sailor Moon mused.

"Don't know where she gets off," grunted Vesta. "Sounds like she's just as guilty as he was."

"And who are you to judge a princess?" bristled Akisham. Vesta was about to reply, but Sailor Moon's hand on her arm quieted her.

"It sounds like she's still hurt from your father's rejection," Sailor Moon reasoned. "We were at King Toren's castle earlier and he said Mellebet doesn't want to see you."

"That is King Toren speaking," Urusham replied bitterly.

"No, Dearest, it is not," Akisham told him plaintively. "Mellebet has hardened her heart. She wishes nothing to do with you."

"Then she can say it to my face!" Urusham barked. "And then she can name why she so scorns me!"

"Were that possible, I would take you to her myself!" Akisham cried. "She would probably strike you down rather than listen to you!"

A movement caught Urusham's eye. He looked down and saw Sailor Pallas, dwarfed by him by nearly two feet, looking up earnestly at him.

"Mister Urusham-sir," Pallas said with a lump in her throat. "You don't really want to do that. It's not a nice thing to have your Mommy say she doesn't love you to your face." For a moment Pallas's words and earnest manner seemed to touch the broad, burly warrior. Then his face hardened.

"My course is set," he replied. Akisham looked down in frustration. Urusham turned to Sailor Moon. "Do you choose to assist me?"

"If you're set on confronting your mother," Sailor Moon answered, "my friends and I will help even out the odds." Then she thought a moment. "But you ought to consider what Akisham said. If your mother does attack you, what do you plan to do?"

Urusham smiled. "Think that I would slay her? I am not that embittered toward her. And Akisham would never forgive me, and I would not have her for an enemy." The white-haired woman playfully shoved him. "But I will know. I must know whether there are still feelings in her heart for me or if the years and the bitter memories have hardened her to me. And neither King Toren nor his merwyn hordes will bar me from her. I will see her, whether he opposes me or not - - and whether you help or not."

"OK," nodded Sailor Moon. "But let's see whether we can avoid any violent confrontations."

"So how are we going to do it?" Ceres asked. "King Toren seemed pretty adamant."

"We know that the Princess Mellebet does not stay behind the castle confines," Helios reasoned. "Does she have a regular pattern in which she ventures out?"

"She hunts twice a week," Urusham answered. "Her last attempt was two cycles ago. It was then that I last attempted to confront her."

"But she is always accompanied by two merwyn who act as her guards," Akisham added. "King Toren fears for her safety and will not allow her to go out alone - - not since 'that day'."

"Wow, know the feeling," Sailor Moon quipped. "When is she due to go out next?"

Akisham studied the sky. "It is late. She will not venture out until next morning. What is your plan?"

"Easy," Sailor Moon replied. "We separate her bodyguards from her long enough for Urusham to have his talk. If she wants to extend the conversation, she'll tell her guards to stand down. If she doesn't, you have your answer and we break it off and leave." She turned to Urusham. "Does that sound like a plan you can get behind?"

"Her guards are not to be taken lightly," warned the man.

"Neither are we," Sailor Moon answered him.

"Then we will do as you say," Urusham responded.

"I must get back to the castle. Mellebet has already forbidden me to see you," Akisham said. "And Father will be concerned. May your plan succeed."

Akisham transformed back into a merwyn. The burly canine flexed its wings and pushed off into the air.

"You sure you can trust her?" Vesta ventured.

"Akisham is my heart," Urusham said. "We will have a fight ahead of us tomorrow. I have food I will share with you. And then you should rest. You will need your strength if you seek to face King Toren's merwyn guards."

Juno began hearing Ceres taking deep breaths.

Continued in Chapter 5


	5. Patterns Of Vengeance

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 5: "Patterns Of Vengeance"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p><em>Rei stroked the pink hair on top of Small Lady's head as the child lay in bed listening to her story. What was it about this girl that always seemed to make the priest so content to be in her presence?<em>

"_Hoori swam to the bottom of the ocean and began looking for his brother's fish hook," Rei continued. "He searched and searched, but couldn't find it, for the ocean floor is vast and a single hook is easily concealed. But Hoori wouldn't give up. He swore to his brother that he would bring back the fish hook and Hoori's word was as important to him as his brother was."_

_Rather than growing sleepy, Rei noticed that Small Lady stared up at her, enraptured by the narrative._

"_One time when Hoori swam to the bottom of the ocean, he encountered a beautiful maiden," Rei continued. "It was Toyotama-hime and Hoori was immediately struck by her beauty and grace. Toyotama-hime knew why Hoori came to the bottom of the ocean and led him to the fish hook. Together they carried it to the surface and Hoori presented it to his brother, Hoderi. Toyotama-hime looked on, proud and happy, for she had been struck by how beautiful Hoori was, and she was touched and grateful to find that he was a man of honorable character as well. Toyotama-hime began paying visits to the village again and again, intrigued by Hoori. He welcomed the visits, for he found himself dreaming of Toyotama-hime when he slept."_

"_And then they got married?" Small Lady asked._

"_Don't jump ahead, Smarty," Rei playfully cautioned the girl. Small Lady returned the admonition with a mischievous smirk. "Soon Toyotama-hime and Hoori decided to marry. They spent the first three years of their marriage in Ryujin-sama's undersea castle and seemed very happy."_

"_Seemed?" Small Lady darkened._

"_Well," Rei began, "Hoori loved his bride, but he became homesick for his village and his brother. To please her husband, Toyotama-hime agreed to return with him to the surface and live in Hoori's village. And Ryujin-sama, because he loved his daughter dearly and wished her to be happy, allowed her to go with Hoori even though he would sorely miss her. And, after a time on the surface, Toyotama-hime found that she was going to have a child."_

_Small Lady's eyes sparkled as her mouth opened with a delighted gasp._

* * *

><p>A shadow passed across the gap between two trees. A small herd of cloven-hoofed herbivores with short-haired coats and four menacing horns atop their heads stopped grazing and looked up. They stared for the longest time for signs that a predator stalked them. Nothing more could they sense, and yet the uneasy feeling wouldn't leave them. Finally most of them returned to grazing, though one of the beasts continued to watch. His hunger could wait. He didn't intend to become a meal for something else this day.<p>

The suspense finally became too much for the young buck and he bolted in the other direction. This movement spooked the rest of the herd and they followed, running seemingly from nothing. And all at once, they discovered the young buck had been right to be suspicious. Barreling through the thicket of trees in pursuit of them were three merwyn. The trees prevented the merwyn from extending their wings, which was why the herd grazed there. But the merwyn were fast, too, and relentless if they were hungry. The herd barely kept ahead of the pack, darting in between trees hoping to slow or stop the pursuit.

Up ahead, the great river loomed and the herd knew they had to alter course. The beasts could easily leap the river, but so could the merwyn and leaping over would put them in open country. This would allow the merwyn to swoop down on them and they wouldn't have a chance. Near the banks, the herd suddenly veered left, hoping that their pursuers would crash into the trees or the river and give up.

At once, the air was pierced by a call: "Aqua Initiation!" A spout of water struck one of the merwyn, knocking it off its feet and tossing it into the air. Suspended aloft by the spout, the merwyn twisted to escape it. But tree limbs suddenly elongated and snaked around the huge canine's legs, neck and torso. Spreading its wings, the merwyn lashed at the limbs as its sharp beak-like nose snapped one of the branches that held it. The tree growth only increased, wrapping around the beast's nose and trapping its wings to its body. The merwyn struggled to get free, but with its limbs held apart by the sturdy branches, it could not muster enough strength to pull free.

Down below, Sailor Juno and Ceres high-fived.

While this happened, the merwyn on the left side of the pack suddenly found itself lifted into the air by an invisible force. Flailing its limbs had little effect. The force tossed the merwyn into a small clump of trees, where it found itself resting in a huge spider web. The sticky strands clutched at the beast's fur and the feathers of its spread wings. The merwyn began thrashing and threatened to break the web that held it. Quickly, though, it was set upon by a black spider the size of a sport utility vehicle. Expelling thread from its abdomen, the spider webbed the merwyn's mouth shut. Then using its legs, the spider webbed the merwyn's forelimbs to its torso, then captured the hind legs and pulled them to the forelegs. Several more passes and the merwyn was helpless. The spider skittered to the bottom of the web.

"Neat work, huh Pallas?" the spider asked.

Pallas made a face. "Vesta is icky! She gives Pallas the creepy-creepies!"

"I've been called worse," the spider shrugged.

Prey forgotten, the middle merwyn stopped and looked back for her two companions. Seeing their plights, she moved to defend them. But she pulled up short when Urusham dropped from the trees before her.

"Mother!" he declared boldly, his sword ready but not held threateningly. "I would speak with . . .!"

The merwyn lunged at him, teeth bared. Only Urusham's superior reflexes kept her from biting his head off. And it brought her close enough to see the truth.

"You are not my mother!" Urusham exclaimed, his sword pointed out.

The merwyn lunged again, but pulled up short to avoid the upward slash of the sword. The beast slashed at Urusham with her talons, teeth still bared and waiting for an opening to strike. Urusham deflected one slash, leaped over another, and drove the merwyn back with a cut of his own sword.

"Where is Mellebet?" demanded Urusham.

"Fool!" the merwyn growled. "Think you that the Princess would not guess your game? That she would just present herself to you? King Toren and his daughters are far wiser than you give them credit for! I was selected to be the decoy to lure you out so that her grace can be done with you once and for all eternity!"

The merwyn lunged at Urusham, snapping at him with renewed ferocity. He avoided the attacks again and again, but the merwyn was relentless and forced Urusham back. Finally it looked like the beast had caught up with him. But when its jaws clamped down, they clamped down on a barrier between them and Urusham. The merwyn pulled back, puzzled, then glanced at a rustle in the bushes. Sailor Moon and Sailor Saturn emerged, with Helios behind them. Saturn had erected her Silence Wall around Urusham.

But no sooner had she dropped it then Urusham sprang forward. With malicious intent, he swung his sword and cut a deep, bloody gash across the chest of the great canine. It yelped once and fell to the ground.

"Urusham, stop!" Sailor Moon shouted. Urusham stood over the merwyn, seething with anger.

"Free the others," spat Urusham. Sailor Moon and the senshi only watched in shock. "Free them! I will make no move to hurt them, unless they attack."

After a signal from Sailor Moon, Ceres released one guard from her tree limbs while Saturn cut the other loose from Vesta's web. The guards rushed to their fallen comrade's side, their heads low and emitting guttural growls. Urusham was unmoved.

"Take her to your castle, so she may be treated," Urusham told the merwyn, his anger still boiling beneath his words. "Tell Toren that I WILL speak with my mother. How much blood is spilled between now and that time is up to him."

When Urusham made no move toward them, the two merwyn guards grasped their fallen companion in their mouths and dragged her off toward the clearing, where they would be free to fly. As they left, Sailor Moon confronted Urusham.

"That wasn't a very smart thing to do," she told him. "We're trying to smooth this situation over, not aggravate it."

"I grow weary of waiting," Urusham replied, unrepentant. "And I grow weary of their disdain for me and my situation. Perhaps you are right. But I am not the only one guilty of aggravating this conflict." He turned. "I go to observe the castle. You may come if you wish."

While Sailor Moon stared in frustration, the Asteroids huddled.

"That could have gone better," Ceres commented.

"I'm wondering how they found out," Vesta said grimly.

"You don't think Akisham . . ." Juno began.

"Ratted us out? Yeah, the thought occurred to me."

Two hours later, the senshi peered from concealment in the forest while Urusham sat in the taller thickets of grass close to the forest. He was still staring at the castle, observing all movement in and out. The only concession he had made to the world around him was to drape a branch he'd broken off one of the forest trees over his head to shield him from the mid-day sun.

"Can we do something else?" whined Pallas. "Pallas is bored!"

"How long IS he going to sit out there?" Juno asked.

"Probably until his mom comes out or he finds a way in," Vesta judged. "Gotta admire his tenacity."

"Pallas is still bored!"

Sailor Moon exhaled. "This isn't getting us anywhere."

"At least no one is getting killed," offered Saturn.

"Well I'd rather not spend the rest of my life on this planet," Sailor Moon countered. "If only there was some way we could get around Toren and reach Mellebet. Helios, are you familiar with Mellebet's dreams?"

"I am," the Dream Guardian nodded. "Once I landed upon this world, I was able to associate the inhabitants with their dreams."

"Don't suppose you have a way to communicate with her? Or at least know why she won't meet with Urusham?"

Helios grew somber. "I could leave a suggestion in her next dream, but I would prefer not to do so. Such a thing would be an imposition into a very personal area. While I have visited you in your dreams, it is only because I am more - - intimate with you than with others." Sailor Moon heard Vesta whistle in the background. "To do so with another entity - - is something I am uncomfortable with. And you know I will not reveal what another has dreamed."

"But you know," Sailor Moon concluded.

"Her dreams provide me with - - digits," Helios said cryptically. "And I have - - added them together."

"So is there a point to this?" she asked. "Can we accomplish peace here, or are we just beating our heads against a stone wall?"

"Who can predict the heart?" Helios replied. "I can only tell you with certainty that it will not be easy."

"Never is, is it?" Sailor Moon scowled.

"If we could only get to Mellebet," Saturn mused. "Maybe if we all teleported into the castle?"

"Or flew in," Vesta suggested.

"There's got to be a fresh water ingress," Juno added. "I could carry us in an air pocket through the water system."

"Or I could use plants to push through the floor," Ceres suggested. But Sailor Moon shook her head.

"No, we can't force our way in," she told them. "If someone were in danger inside, that would be one thing. But we can't just bust in there and demand the two parties negotiate."

"Why not?" Vesta asked.

"A lasting peace can never be achieved under duress," Sailor Moon stated. Helios nodded proudly. "You can't compel peace. The two factions have to want it, want it enough to give up something."

"Didn't your Mom say that once?" Saturn smiled.

"She's not wrong ALL the time," Sailor Moon grinned back.

"Hey!" Vesta said suddenly, alert and poised for action. "Something's up!"

The senshi turned and found the sky filled with a dozen merwyn. They all flew from the castle, arcing over the forest, causing the sun to momentarily strobe onto the forest below. Urusham, once he saw their flight arc, cast off the tree branch and sprinted at full speed toward the forest, but not toward them.

"Where's everybody going?" Pallas asked.

"I don't know," Sailor Moon replied. "Juno, you're the pilot, so you've got the best sense of direction."

"Someplace on the other side of the forest, judging from the trajectory," Juno answered. "Direction seems to be - - hey, isn't that the village on the other side of Katyr's cave? Between the mountain range and the river?"

"I don't like this!" Vesta exclaimed. "Fauna Assimilation, Pegasus!"

As Vesta transformed, so did Helios. Each senshi climbed atop one of the winged equines and they leaped into the air. Clearing the trees, the senshi headed for the village of Urusham at top speed. From the air, Sailor Moon could glimpse Urusham below when the tree cover parted. He was demonstrating surprising speed for a humanoid and she wondered how much his physical prowess was affected by the merwyn genes he no doubt inherited.

Clearing the forest and going past the cave where they found Katyr, the senshi neared the village. It was as they feared. The Merwyn were rampaging through the village, destroying buildings, conveyances and crops, and killing any human luckless enough to find himself or herself in the beasts' path. The merwyn didn't just kill humans. The humans were torn apart, ruthlessly and mercilessly.

"Fiery Incantation!" Sailor Pallas called out from Vesta's back.

The streets of the village erupted in flame, causing the merwyn to flinch back and the villagers left alive to scramble to refuge. Barred from their victims, several of the merwyn growled and pushed off into the sky, launching themselves at the oncoming senshi. Teeth were bared and talons thrust out. There was no doubt as to their intent.

"Silence Wall!" Saturn shouted, pushing herself to the limit to shield both winged horses and their riders. Several merwyn glanced off and fell back. The impact became too much for Saturn, though, and she was forced to drop her shields.

"Aqua Initiation!" Juno shouted.

Manipulating the nearby river water into dozens of water projectiles, Juno launched them at the attacking merwyn. Many of the shots were avoided, but the ones that struck hit hard and stung. Driving the beasts to ill-temper, several of them renewed their attacks.

"Ceres? Got anything?" Juno prodded.

"Uh," Ceres murmured, then shook herself. Thinking for a moment, she tossed a handful of seeds at the onrushing beasts. "Floral Stimulation!"

Vines burst from the seeds and rapidly grew, ensnaring three of the merwyn and winding around them until their wings and limbs were trapped against their bodies. The canines toppled to the ground, landing hard.

"Beautiful Incantation!" Pallas called out, then swatted with her hand. A telekinetic force mimicked the hand gestures and swatted several merwyn from the air. "Bad puppies!" Pallas exclaimed as she swatted them. "Bad, bad, bad!"

Sailor Moon had the Moon Tier out, but the scene was too chaotic to be able to use it and get everyone. She was about to use it anyway, reasoning that the Asteroids could clean up the rest, when her sharp eye spotted Urusham emerge from the ridge near Katyr's cave. Taking only a second to gather in the scene before him, Urusham sprinted forward and leaped off of a rock outcropping.

His leap sent him soaring into the air. His sword was pulled back over his head. As he sailed toward a merwyn, the sword slashed down and cleaved one of the beast's wings from its body. The canine howled in agony and plummeted to the ground. Landing near the wounded creature, Urusham placed his foot upon the creature's neck and turned to the others in the sky, his sword raised belligerently.

"Cowards!" he bellowed. "The quarrel is with me! Not these innocent villagers! Come! Attack me! Attack one who can fight back!" The merwyn circled above him. "Attack me and feel the bite of my blade! Attack me or begone back to your dark lair!"

"This has gone on too long," Sailor Moon muttered. "Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!"

Pink energy fanned out from the Moon Tier, blanketing the village and most of the beings there. It covered the villagers and eased their suffering. It covered many of the merwyn and cooled the rage within them. It swept over Urusham and he let his sword drop and his shoulders slump. He stepped away from the fallen merwyn. The beast struggled to its feet and staggered away, the fur around the stump of one wing matted black and red. The other merwyn broke off their siege of the village and flew off.

The senshi landed. Pallas snuffed out her fire. Wails began to rise up from the village as survivors emerged from their shelters and discovered the dead, the maimed and the destruction of their lives. Saturn swallowed. Ceres closed her eyes and began breathing deeply. Pallas began crying. Sailor Moon walked over to Urusham.

"I never knew the depth of contempt Toren had for my kind," Urusham grumbled. "Well he shall pay for this day."

"Urusham, vengeance isn't going to bring the dead back to life," Sailor Moon warned.

"It will let them rest," Urusham replied.

"No," Sailor Moon told him, "it will only create more dead."

"So we should just meekly accept Toren's contempt? Live in fear of it happening again?"

"If you let all of this go, maybe it won't happen again."

Urusham turned and walked away. Sailor Moon let him go, wondering if she was letting her last chance to resolve this slip through her fingers, but uncertain as to how to proceed.

Then she noticed Katyr up on the ridge by his cave. The old man had observed them, had observed much of the conflict. Without comment, he turned and walked back to his cave.

Continued in Chapter 6


	6. The Source

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 6: "The Source"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>At the edge of the village, close to the bank of the great river that ran by the village, Sailor Moon and her senshi gathered together. The merwyn had gathered their wounded and hobbled off. The villagers tended to their maimed and gathered their dead.<p>

"This mission so far has been a gigantic bust," Ceres said what the others were thinking. "Do you suppose they'll be back, like Urusham thinks?"

"Doubt it," Vesta replied. "They made their point." Saturn and Ceres looked at her curiously. "This was retaliation. Urusham pushed them too far: Not going away when they told him to, harassing the king's daughter, wounding her stand-in. This was a warning to Urusham. They'll only be back if Urusham keeps stirring things up." Vesta thought. "Or if some of them decide the humans are easy prey."

"Then they're going to be back," Ceres reasoned. "Urusham didn't look like he was going to give this up."

"And the circle keeps going," Sailor Moon muttered bitterly.

With that, she turned and headed away from the bank. Everyone was surprised by this. Saturn immediately hurried to follow and the others tentatively fell in behind them.

"Where are you going?" Saturn asked her friend.

"I spotted Katyr watching this battle," Sailor Moon told her without breaking stride. "I'm interested to know his reaction to it. I'm interested to know a few things concerning him." Suddenly she stopped and turned to the Asteroids. "Do me a favor? Find Urusham and keep an eye on him. I get the feeling he's going to mount another attack on the castle. Right now that's only going to escalate things."

"Do we stop him if we find out he is mounting another attack?" Juno asked.

Sailor Moon expelled air. "Yeah. Do it as gently as you can. I don't want to cut off lines of communication with him. But another offensive against Toren is going to send this situation spiraling out of control."

As the Asteroids nodded and set off, Saturn turned to her.

"I'm coming with YOU," she said emphatically. Sailor Moon grinned.

"Yeah, kind of figured that," she chuckled, "you being so dedicated and all." Saturn's mouth screwed up at being teased. "Just try to stay in the background, OK? I don't want to make Katyr defensive." She turned to Helios. "You coming, too?"

"I think it is best that I should not, Maiden," Helios replied. "I know things, and Katyr has the ability to know that I know them. It would be best were I not there."

Clearly she was disappointed, but Sailor Moon nodded. She and Saturn turned and ventured into the cave where Katyr supposedly resided.

The mouth of the cave led into a short tunnel about seven feet high. It was a natural formation and Sailor Moon judged she had little fear of it collapsing. As they went a few feet more, she noticed in the low light that Saturn was trying to control her reaction to the place.

"Saturn, I'm sorry!" she said. "I forgot you don't like dark, closed in places. I'll be fine on my own if you want to go back."

"No," Saturn shook her head. Sailor Moon could see she was clenched as tight as a mainspring. "My job is - - to be here, to make sure nothing happens to you."

"OK," Sailor Moon said, putting her hand on Saturn's shoulder. Then she grinned. "But ease up on your glaive or else you're going to choke it to death."

Saturn looked down and saw how tightly she was gripping her glaive. She laughed nervously, then bit her lip and sheepishly looked back at her friend.

After a few more feet, light could be seen coming from a junction on the right. Turning the corner, the two senshi saw the tunnel open into a larger cavity underneath the rock. It was cavernous and well lit, allowing Saturn to relax some. The area was divided, one side containing a bed and table with a crude cooking area. The other side had a longer table, with bottles in racks above it and a shelf containing scrolls. Resting on two display hooks on one wall was a handsome sword. It had seen many battles, but still looked like it could kill in the right hands. Next to it was a huge, powerful bow and a quiver of arrows.

Sitting at the table, his hands in his lap and his gaze affixed to the grain of the wood on the table top, was Katyr. He didn't acknowledge their presence. He didn't move. He just stared. Sailor Moon walked over.

"Gruesome, wasn't it?" Sailor Moon said.

"Do you know that human and merwyn once lived in peace?" Katyr murmured. He continued to stare. "They were a proud and strong species, and humans were beneath their notice. So long as we did nothing to provoke them, they were content to feed on their natural game and leave us to our lives."

"And what Urusham's father did to Mellebet changed all that?" Sailor Moon asked. "Is that why you brought us here? To protect Urusham from Mellebet's people, but also to protect Urusham's people from them - - and to protect Mellebet's people from Urusham."

"He's so single-minded," Katyr muttered. "It's the trait that made him what he is today, more than the blood of his mother that runs through his veins. But every trait has its good and bad side. The same trait that makes him great makes him dangerous." He turned to Sailor Moon. "Have you come to abandon us?"

"I'm pretty single-minded myself," Sailor Moon told him. "I said I was going to bring peace to this place and I'm going to do it. But I'm going to need help. I need to know if there is a way to get past Toren to Mellebet."

"The Princess does as the Princess wills," Katyr shrugged.

"Maybe if she had an incentive to meet us," the pink-tressed senshi mused. "Maybe she'd meet with us if she knew you were with us."

"Me?" Katyr queried. Then he shook his head. "Why would she have any interest in me?"

"Old feelings die hard," Sailor Moon suggested. "Maybe deep down, she still loves you."

Katyr looked up at the girl in surprise.

"Or maybe she just wants the chance to tell you off," Sailor Moon continued. "But if I can get her there face to face, maybe I can reason with her - - get her to meet with Urusham."

"You mean - - he's Urusham's father?" gasped Saturn.

"I have no idea what you speak of," Katyr muttered.

"Pallas said you were concealing some of the truth," Sailor Moon outlined. "Your concern for Urusham is genuine, and suggested a closeness, either family or a mentor. Urusham was raised by his father's brother, who was a tiller. But that bow over there is the bow of a hunter and Urusham's father was a hunter. Helios wouldn't come in because he was afraid you'd sense he knew your secret and refuse to speak to us. And then there's that cloud of guilt hanging over you that seems to want to crush you." She looked straight at him. "If I'm wrong, tell me."

"I am not Urutarga," Katyr said flatly. "And if I were, I would be the last person Mellebet would wish to see."

"Do you know that?" Sailor Moon asked him flatly. "Or are you just going by what happened years ago?"

"If you wish to leave us to our fate," Katyr maintained, "I will understand. This is not your fight. Perhaps I was wrong to call you."

"If you're worried about what happened in the village," she told him, "Saturn and I can fix that. We can't help the people who were killed, but we can restore what was."

"We can?" Saturn asked doubtfully.

"That would be a great boon to the village," Katyr replied neutrally. "It is more than I can do for them."

"You can do something for them," Sailor Moon persisted. "You can stop this needless bloodshed. Or you can hide in this cave and 'do penance'." She turned to leave. "If you decide to help, I'm sure you'll be able to find me."

Emerging from the cave, she walked over to join up with Helios. Her love met her half way.

"Your frustration is like a thing alive, Maiden," Helios offered. "Take care that it does not color your thinking."

"I wonder if Mom and Dad ever got the urge to gather a bunch of people into a room and just beat on them with sticks until they stopped acting like jerks," fumed Sailor Moon. Helios gathered her into his arms and pressed her against him. After enjoying it, she pulled away and seized Saturn's hand.

"What . . .?" Saturn sputtered.

"I've got to show everyone I'm not just talking a good game," she said.

"You were serious?" gasped Saturn. Sailor Moon whirled on her.

"Look! Look at all of the suffering out there!" Sailor Moon exclaimed, gesturing to the broken and devastated village. "Maybe I can't make it all better, but I can eliminate some of the suffering! And maybe by doing that, I can at least inspire somebody in this conflict to stop killing each other and talk - - that there's a better way to use power than to hurt each other!" She held out her hand to Saturn. "Merge energies with me - - please."

Saturn clasped her friend's hand. "At least you said 'please'. But don't do too much!"

Sailor Moon grinned. She raised the Moon Tier over her head.

"Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!" she shouted. Waves of energy, pink threaded with violet, radiated out from her. It washed over the village like the crashing surf. Broken structures were mended. Broken bodies were healed. Pain and suffering seemed to drain away. Tragedy was replaced in the village by a sentiment of hope.

Gently Helios leaned in and gripped the arm of each senshi. "That is enough, Maiden," he whispered to her. Obediently she let the wave fade, then was overcome by a sensation of intense fatigue. Saturn suffered the same and Helios was hard-pressed to ease them both to the ground. They were spent, but unhurt.

Glancing over, Helios spotted Katyr standing by the cave entrance. He had observed most, if not all of the act. But there was no reaction apparent upon his face.

* * *

><p>High in the sky, three senshi rode a winged brown horse with a chestnut mane and tail. Ceres searched the ground to the right. Juno searched to the left. Pallas mentally searched for Urusham, trying desperately to concentrate on her mission and not surrender to the giddy joy she always felt when mounted upon a horse.<p>

"Any sign of him?" prodded Vesta in her winged horse form.

"I don't see any sign of him," Juno reported.

"He can't have gotten away from us that fast!" Ceres exclaimed. "He's fast, but he's not that fast!"

"He's probably in or under some tree somewhere, plotting his next move," Juno speculated. "Anything, Pallas?"

"Pallas can't hear Mr. Urusham-Sir," the senshi confessed. "She's trying very hard, but she hears too many other voices."

"The villagers?" Ceres asked.

"Some are the people," Pallas confirmed. "Some are the doggies."

"You can hear the merwyn?" gasped Juno.

"The doggies are very upset," Pallas informed them. "Some of the doggies want to be bad doggies and bite the people."

"We should tell Sailor Moon," Juno said.

"If we get some sign that they're forming to attack again," Ceres advised. Vesta glanced back at her. The tension was detectable in her voice. "Right now, let's concentrate on finding Urusham."

Suddenly Pallas reached back and grasped Juno's hand.

"What's up?" Juno asked.

"Shh," Pallas whispered. "Pallas is trying to use Juno as a way to find Mr. Urusham-Sir."

"By holding my hand?"

"She's trying to hear him through Juno," Pallas told her. "Because you like him."

"What are you talking about?" Juno sputtered.

"You're totally wet for him," Ceres whispered in her ear from behind. "No big surprise, I guess. He is pretty impressive."

"I am not wet . . .!" protested Juno.

"There," Pallas pointed.

Everyone looked as Vesta began to circle. He was hard to see at first. But crouched down in the grasses about a third of a mile from the bank across from the castle was Urusham. His stealth and concentration reminded them of a lion stalking prey. The fact that he had made it this far without being seen was astounding. And there was little doubt where he was headed.

"Guy's got guts," Vesta remarked. "Plan's not bad, either. Counterattack while the other side is tending to their wounded and bickering among themselves."

Ceres took a deep breath. "Go on in, Vesta, before he gets any closer."

Swooping down, Vesta landed just ahead of Urusham. The man stopped short, but didn't stand or otherwise reveal his position.

"Leave now before you invite an attack upon us," Urusham said in a low growl.

"We're speaking on behalf of Sailor Moon," Ceres said, dismounting from Vesta. "She doesn't want you to make another attempt to get into the castle."

"Tell your Sailor Moon to either assist me or stand aside," Urusham told them.

"Look, she's trying to save your ass!" Vesta snapped. "Even if you managed to get into that castle, how long would you last? You saw what those merwyn did to the village!"

"Death does not frighten me."

"You're not going to accomplish anything by dying!" argued Ceres.

The sound of stirring atop the castle drew everyone's attention. Above the walls, three merwyn flew up and surveyed the area looking for the source of the commotion. Knowing he was moments from being spotted, Urusham bolted forward. He shoved past Juno and leaped up onto Vesta's back. His sword whipped out and came across Vesta's throat, the blade pressing into the flesh.

"Fly!" he commanded. "Get me over the castle!"

Vesta's response was to drop her transformation and become human again. She didn't say anything, but the stubborn look on her face said that she wouldn't be moved, even under the threat of death. If anything, Ceres and Pallas seemed more frightened than Vesta.

"Beautiful Incantation!" Pallas screeched.

Her telekinesis grasped the blade and pulled it away from Vesta. Vesta ducked down and spun away from Urusham as he struggled to keep his sword from being torn from his hands. Pallas bore down, but the powerful Urusham wasn't easily bested. Finally the strain became too much and the blade broke. Pallas tumbled to the ground while Urusham staggered back. In frustration, he threw the broken hilt to the ground.

"Hey, those merwyn are going to attack!" Vesta exclaimed. She was about to transform, but Juno acted first.

"Aqua Initiation!" she shouted and launched water projectiles the size of cannon balls. The water impacted with the three merwyn and sent them spinning.

"We've got to go!" Ceres hissed. "Now!"

"I will not be denied!" snapped Urusham.

"Floral Stimulation!" Ceres bellowed.

Quickly the grass changed to thick vines and coiled around Urusham until he was wrapped tightly. Vesta changed into a buffalo. Urusham was thrown across her back and the four senshi headed back for the forest at top speed. To their relief, the merwyn chose not to follow.

The Asteroids radioed ahead, so Sailor Moon, Helios and Sailor Saturn were waiting for them when they returned to the village. The sight of Urusham wrapped up in thick vines and tossed over the back of Vesta the buffalo made her heart sink, though at the same time she was proud of her senshi for proving equal to the task. She knew Urusham was not an easy person to subdue. Eager to diffuse the situation, if that was possible now, Sailor Moon moved to meet the Asteroids as they reached the outskirts of the village.

"We tried to be as gentle as possible, Princess," Juno offered.

"RELEASE ME!" bellowed Urusham.

"Ceres, let him go," Sailor Moon sighed.

"OK," Ceres deferred. "But if he doesn't settle down, I'm going to use an anesthetic plant on him."

The vines unwrapped from Urusham and he slid down Vesta's massive back to his feet. Belligerently he shoved his face to Sailor Moon's. Saturn held her glaive tightly, ready to use it.

"So, you side with my enemies?" Urusham snarled.

"I'm not siding with anybody," Sailor Moon answered, struggling to stay calm. "I'm trying to avoid more bloodshed. The more bloodshed, the less chance there is of peace."

"Your peace is the peace of subjugation!" spat Urusham. "I will not cower before Toren and his clan! I will speak with my mother! But now, for what he did here, I will have Toren's head as well! And I will slay any who get in my way!" His eyes narrowed as he glared at Sailor Moon. "Even you."

Urusham turned and stalked away. Everyone let him go because they were more concerned with the bubbling anger twisting the features of their Princess.

"This is crazy!" she fumed. "How do you achieve peace when neither side will give an inch on ANYTHING?"

"A tall fence?" Ceres suggested.

"With a mine field," Juno added.

"With a force field," Vesta added.

Pallas hunched her shoulders and kept an uneasy silence.

"Maybe we could try reasoning with King Toren again," Saturn offered timidly.

"I don't know," sighed Sailor Moon. "My 'father's protecting their daughters' sense tells me he's not going to be any more amenable to it." She exhaled in frustration. "The one we need to talk to is Mellebet. But how to get to her?"

The light suddenly went on in Sailor Moon's red eyes.

"Akisham!" exclaimed Sailor Moon. "Akisham's sympathetic to Urusham's cause. She said she won't speak to Urusham, but maybe she'll speak to me. If I could convince Akisham to get me in to speak to Mellebet . . ."

"You sure you want to do that?" Vesta spoke up.

"Why not?"

"How do you know you can trust her? Those merwyn knew about our plan to take this Princess by surprise. How do you know Akisham didn't tip them off?"

Sailor Moon scowled. "I don't, I suppose." Then she flashed a determined smile at Vesta. "I guess I'll just have to rely on faith that she didn't. Assuming I can find her." She turned to Helios. "You're familiar with Akisham through her dreams, aren't you?"

"I am, Maiden," Helios nodded.

"Do you think you could track her through that familiarity? Maybe use it to lead us to her?"

"I believe I can."

"Then that's what we'll do."

"We're coming with you," Saturn told her.

"Not this time," Sailor Moon replied.

"But Princess, she's probably going to be in the castle!" Juno said urgently. "If you go there looking for her, you're going to be right in the middle of all of those merwyn and they're going to see you as an intruder!"

"That's why it has to be me and Helios," Sailor Moon explained. "The more people, the bigger the chance of us being spotted."

"But . . .!" Saturn began to exclaim.

"You five get as close as you can to the castle without raising an alarm," Sailor Moon added. "If Helios and I get into trouble, I'll call and you bail us out."

"Sure you will," Saturn said, emotion coloring her voice.

"I'm sorry, Saturn, but it has to be this way. Consider it an order if that's what it takes. Now I'm going to get some rest until nightfall. You guys try to take it easy, too. But keep an eye out in case Urusham tries anything stupid."

She could see they wanted to argue. But reluctantly her senshi gave in. That hurt. Sailor Moon hated to pull rank on them, hated to strain their loyalty so. But the situation, in her mind, demanded it.

Glancing back, she noticed Katyr standing by the mouth of his cave. He had been watching everything. She dismissed it from her mind. Katyr had his chance. Now she was going to have to settle things.

Continued in Chapter 7


	7. The Ninja Princess

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 7: "The Ninja Princess"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>As evening approached on the planet of Akalah, four senshi sat around a fire near the village by the river. Sailor Moon and Sailor Pallas slept under a shelter grown from vegetation by Ceres. Next to the thatched overhang, Helios sat cross-legged and meditated, the chosen form of rest for the Guardian of Dreams. Little conversation occurred between the four senshi. Vesta would watch the building that Urusham had gone into. She hadn't seen him come out, so she assumed he was still in there, probably preparing for his next assault. Saturn kept staring balefully at the sleeping Sailor Moon. Ceres and Juno ate some of the animal meat that the villagers had shared with them.<p>

"Careful," Juno said to Saturn. "You'll burn a hole in her uniform staring at her like that." It took a few seconds for the words to register in Saturn's brain. She stared at Juno for a moment in confusion, then blushed slightly. "We're all worried."

"Tactically she's right, of course," Saturn confessed. "But if something happens . . .!" Saturn bit her lip. "She's not going to call for help, you know."

"Yeah, she thinks she has to do it all or she's not worthy of the name 'Sailor Moon'," Juno sighed. "But she's running this show. All we can do is play by her rules and do the best we can."

"Or we could go home," Ceres suggested. Juno and Saturn looked at her. "When you're faced with two sides that are too stubborn and too mad at each other to even consider peace, maybe the best thing is to just let them destroy each other instead of getting sucked into their war and end up being collateral damage." She looked down. "Or does that sound like the coward's way out?"

"Nobody thinks you're a coward, Ceres," Saturn told her.

"Except maybe you," grunted Vesta as she stared at the house.

"Oh you are so much smarter sounding when you don't talk," Ceres groused.

"I'm sure there are situations that by any logical assessment would be considered hopeless," Juno mused. "Is this one of them? I'm not ready to make that call yet. Obviously the Princess isn't, either. Saturn?"

Saturn thought. "I don't know. I thought it was hopeless when Pharaoh 90 arrived on Earth. I thought it was hopeless when Sailor Galaxia took our Star Seeds. Obviously I'm not a very good judge."

"Maybe the obvious answer," Vesta said, "is if anybody can beat a hopeless situation, it's Sailor Moon. So maybe we ought to trust her and back her play."

"Follow her to the death?" Ceres asked.

"Why not? You want to live forever?"

"Yes," Ceres mumbled.

"That place over there is too quiet," Vesta remarked, still staring at the house Urusham was in. "I'm going to check it out. Fauna Assimilation, House Fly."

Transforming into a fly, Vesta zipped off. The other senshi sat by the fire. Dusk was turning to evening.

"If I could sleep, I would," Ceres mumbled. Juno saw a lone bird in the sky, an evening predator glide lazily over the village in search of food.

"Same here," Saturn concurred. "I hope this works. It's only going to get tougher if this doesn't."

Suddenly Vesta was back on one of the stumps they were sitting on, transformed back from her fly form. Everybody jumped.

"Was that necessary?" huffed Ceres.

"Keep your eyes open, I wouldn't have surprised you," Vesta grunted. "He's still in there. He's got a new sword and he's honing the blade. The minute he's satisfied with it, he's headed for the castle. Make book on it."

"What if he attacks right in the middle of Sailor Moon's mission to find Akisham?" Saturn gasped nervously.

"Actually," Vesta began to grin, "it might be just what she needs."

* * *

><p>As Saturn and the Asteroid senshi made their way across the grasslands to the castle, Sailor Moon astride Pegasus soared overhead. At the Princess's urging, Pegasus had been coated with a fine mud solution taken from the river bed by Juno, so that his white mane and body were now a dull brown. Sailor Moon had borrowed a robe from the villagers to cover the pink and white colors of her fuku. The winged horse was high in the sky, hoping to avoid detection until he could locate any sentries guarding the castle.<p>

"Looks to be three sentries," Sailor Moon whispered in her Pegasus's ear.

"I concur, Maiden," Pegasus thought back. "An angled descent should put us on the roof of the center structure. From there, we may seek out Akisham."

Sailor Moon patted her ascent on the side of the equine's neck. Pegasus spread his wings and rode the air currents silently toward the castle. Forced to angle steeply as they neared the castle, due to the movement of one of the sentries, Pegasus came up fast on the roof of the center building. He was compelled to flap several times to keep from impacting the roof before he touched down gently. Sailor Moon slid off immediately and checked to see if the noise had alerted anyone.

Satisfied that they were still undiscovered, Pegasus transformed back into Helios. The darkening mud was still on his face and hair. Sailor Moon smiled and playfully caressed his dusky cheek. Helios caught the hand and then, with a look of mock remonstration, pressed the fingers of the gloved hand to his lips. Then the pair because all-business again, quickly edging along the roof to a spire. A boost from Helios put Sailor Moon into a window. Once inside, she reached down and helped her love up.

Expectantly she looked to Helios for guidance. The Dream Guardian paused for a few moments, then moved down a hallway. The Princess quickly followed, her hand on his shoulder as she kept watch behind them. Just before reaching a staircase, they had to pull back into the shadows. One of the denizens of the castle passed and headed to an upper level. Nothing betrayed their presence, as the mud masked their scent and they kept still until the female passed. Once they deemed it safe, the pair made it down the stairs to the lower level.

As they continued their descent into the depths of the castle, Sailor Moon began to wonder where exactly Akisham was and why. Unless merwyn preferred living at or below ground, something was wrong. At no time did she begin to doubt Helios. His sense was true in her mind, as was his character. But the further down they went, the more she became concerned about what she would find and how they would escape if they were discovered.

On a level below ground, Sailor Moon and Helios came across a level with cells made of stone walls and iron bars. She was liking this even less. There seemed to be no guards, so the pair made their way along the corridor between the cells. Helios walked silently, but with purpose. Sailor Moon followed him. When he held his arm to bar her path, she stopped.

Ahead of them in a cell, laying on a bed of straw, was Princess Akisham in her merwyn form. The canine slept curled up on the straw, its wings draped for added protection across its body. Sailor Moon had the urge to run up to the bars and call out her name, but she resisted. That was the sort of impulsive thing her mother would do. This Sailor Moon examined the area carefully until she was satisfied there were no traps. Only then did she approach.

"Akisham?" she said, loud enough to hear, but low enough so as not to attract attention. Helios watched the corridor.

The beast opened her eyes. When she saw who was at the bars, she raised her head up.

"You are the Earth Princess who was with Urusham," Akisham stated curiously. "How did you get down here?"

"A whole lot of stealth," Sailor Moon replied. "Who put you in here? King Toren? Your own father?"

"No," Akisham answered with some disappointment. "My sister wishes no more contact between Urusham and me." She noticed Sailor Moon's horrified reaction. "Do not think too ill of her. She is my elder and I am honor-bound to obey while under her roof. And these cells are one of the few things which can contain one of my kind."

"Well this puts a crimp in things," muttered the pink-tressed senshi. "I was hoping you could get me an audience with your sister. If I could just talk to her, maybe I could get her to meet with Urusham and end all of this."

"I could have saved you the trip," Akisham shook her head. "Mellebet refuses to have anything to do with Urusham. I have tried repeatedly on his behalf, but she will not be moved. Even Father has implored her to meet with him, for he recognizes the rights of a child to know his parent. But she will not budge, and Father supports her. I have tried to convince Urusham to give this quest up, for just this reason. But he is as stubborn as she is." The merwyn sighed. "How fares my love?"

Sailor Moon looked down. How to tell her?

"He is not . . .?" Akisham asked fearfully.

"Urusham - - is OK," Sailor Moon related. "But Toren attacked the village. There were casualties, on both sides. And now Urusham has something else to crusade over.

Akisham closed her eyes and grimaced.

"Damn Katyr for starting this," she muttered. "If he had only kept his vow."

"Then he is Urutarga?" Sailor Moon asked only to confirm what she was already convinced of.

"That was his name when he married my sister," Akisham explained. "He returned to the village by the river a year ago, when his brother died. He called himself Katyr and possessed mystical powers that made him more than just a hunter." She glanced away bitterly. "He claims to have changed, but words carry little weight coming from him."

"Maiden," Helios said urgently. "Someone comes."

Since there was no place to hide amid the cells, Sailor Moon and Helios raced to the stairs, hoping to make it to the next level. But they were met at the stairs by a massive, angry merwyn. Sailor Moon recognized it as the merwyn they had encountered when they first arrived.

"How did you come here!" bellowed the beast as Sailor Moon and Helios.

"We're not here to cause trouble," Sailor Moon told it, holding her open hands out from her body. "We just want to talk."

"You are SPIES sent by the accursed bastard Urusham!" snarled the merwyn. She stalked closer.

"Sister, no!" screamed Akisham. "They're trying to bring peace to us! They want to settle . . .!"

"Nothing can be settled until the pup Urusham renounces his quest and leaves me alone," snapped Mellebet, "or lies dead!"

"Then tell him that," Sailor Moon implored. "That's all he wants: To know that you don't want him, and why. Meet with him and tell him that."

"Never!" spat the merwyn.

"He's not asking for that much," she persisted. "He's your own son. Don't you at least owe him . . .?"

"OWE HIM?" raged Mellebet. "I am the aggrieved in this situation! If anyone is owed, it is me! I am owed the ability to never look upon him again!" She took a menacing step forward. "You help him in vexing me, and you will suffer for it!"

"Helios," Sailor Moon thought-cast to her love. "Transform to Pegasus!"

Unsure of what she planned, but trusting her implicitly, Helios changed to Pegasus. Spurred by the transformation, the huge merwyn lunged, her jaws snapping at them. But Sailor Moon grabbed the equine's crystal horn and ordered her pink crystal to merge energies with it. In a sparkle of light, the two vanished and the jaws of the merwyn passed through nothing but air. She whirled, thinking they were somehow behind her. Akisham looked on in amazement.

Outside the castle, in the palace courtyard, Sailor Moon and Pegasus materialized. She let go of the horn and hoisted herself onto the equine's back.

"Are we leaving, Maiden?" Pegasus thought to her.

"I really hate leaving Akisham in that cell," Sailor Moon replied. "And I really don't want to leave without trying to get through to Mellebet. That is why we came, but I don't . . ."

At once, the pair were bracketed by two of the merwyn sentries. The winged canines growled out a warning and were poised to attack.

"WE'RE LEAVING!" Sailor Moon exclaimed.

As the two merwyn lunged, Pegasus shot into the air. He barely reached the top of the wall before a third sentry was in pursuit of him, the other two bringing up the rear. Pegasus arced over the wall and angled toward the forest, but the sentry behind him was gaining. A glance behind her told as much to Sailor Moon. Materializing the Moon Tier, she turned to fire at them. But without warning, Pegasus veered to the right. Turning, she could see why.

The three merwyn pulled up as they were confronted by something they had never seen before: a dragon of ancient Chinese myth. The great lizard was thirty-five yards long, with wings that reached ten yards from shoulder to tip and a body covered with hard scales. Bony ridges ran down the dragon's back and along ridges around its eyes and nostrils, while two long drooping feelers came from its upper lip. Inside the mouth was a collection of razor sharp teeth. If that wasn't enough to dissuade the winged canines from following, the dragon opened its mouth and expelled a ball of flame that scattered the pursuers. Satisfied that they had been stopped in their tracks, the dragon turned and rejoined the other senshi where Pegasus had landed. Sailor Moon quickly dismounted.

"I KNEW you weren't going to call!" fussed Saturn as the dragon changed back into Vesta.

"Saturn, I had it handled!" Sailor Moon howled. She received an angry scowl in return. "Don't be that way!"

"What about Akisham?" Ceres asked. "Did you find her? Is she going to be able to help us?"

"She can't even help herself," Sailor Moon sighed. "And even if she could, she couldn't."

The Princess and Helios headed back to the village while the Asteroids puzzled over that last remark.

Back in the village, the senshi sat around the dead remains of the fire they had built earlier. Nobody could sleep, as they were all still too keyed up to sleep. Sailor Moon had related Akisham's situation to them and received gasps of shock from her crew. Vesta gained an instant respect for Akisham, this act proving her trustworthiness to the senshi. Pallas was particularly aghast.

"But how can somebody put her own sister in a cage?" she protested.

"It's kind of their version of locking her in her room," Sailor Moon answered. "Still not right. I'm just worried that Mellebet might do something else to her, just because I was there." The Princess swallowed. "That would really suck."

"Well obviously King Toren isn't the problem," Ceres summed up. "Mellebet just doesn't want this to happen."

"Toren still attacked the village," Vesta reminded her. "I saw the look on Urusham's face. It may not be his first priority, but he still wants payback."

"So how do we stop this now?" Saturn posed. "If Urusham won't give up trying to see his mother and his mother refuses to have anything to do with him - - this is just going to go around in circles forever."

"Or until one of them dies," Vesta added grimly.

"All this just because a guy broke his word to her?" Juno marveled. "Imagine if she'd been married to Quad!"

Everybody sighed in frustration.

"And Pallas thought her mommy was the only mommy who didn't love her baby," Pallas mused. "Poor Mr. Urusham-Sir. Pallas wishes she could make him a nice card to make him feel better."

"You know, Sailor Moon," Ceres began, "you've got the ultimate impasse-breaker. All you have to do is hit Princess Mellebet with a blast from the Moon Tier and I'll bet she'd be a lot more reasonable."

Everyone looked to Sailor Moon.

"For how long?" Sailor Moon exhaled. "I thought of that. But you can't achieve a lasting peace by controlling people's minds or feelings. Mom tried that once and it didn't work. And because of that, it's been one of the cores of her teachings: you can't force people to make peace. They have to want it on their own."

"But all Urusham wants is to meet with his mother," Ceres argued. "You zap her long enough to get her to the table, and everything's solved."

"What if the Princess blames Urusham for Sailor Moon affecting her mind?" Saturn asked. "What if she rejects Urusham and he gets mad?"

"Precisely," Sailor Moon nodded. "We have to get through to them."

"And if you can't?" Ceres asked pointedly. "Are you going to keep trying for the rest of your life?"

When she didn't get an answer, Ceres got up and headed to the floral shelter to get some sleep.

And by the cave, Katyr watched and listened.

Meanwhile, atop the rocky ridge that served as the north wall to the forest, Urusham stood and looked out over the land darkened by night. From his vantage point, he had a straight line of sight to King Toren's castle. He could see the sentries still agitated from the earlier incident with Sailor Moon and her companions. He could see the various windows in the east towers where he knew the King and his family resided. From his long experience, he knew which window belonged to his grandfather, which one to Akisham, the woman he dreamed about and was denied him because of this feud.

And which one belonged to his mother.

Behind him was the hang-glider he had fashioned from sturdy wood with a canopy of canvas. He couldn't use it yet. The sentries were still too active. They would see his approach and he wouldn't stand a chance. So he waited. If the opportunity arose tonight, he would take it. If it didn't, there was still tomorrow night, or the next if the rains came or something else happened.

Patience made a good hunter as much as a strong back and a sharp weapon. A good hunter could wait until just the right moment. And he, like his never-glimpsed father before him, was a good hunter.

Continued in Chapter 8


	8. For Transgressions Done

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 8: "For Transgressions Done"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>"<em>Toyotama-hime was going to have a little baby?" little Chibi-Usa gasped in delight.<em>

"_Yes," Rei smiled, sitting next to the child on her bed. "Toyotama-hime and Hoori were going to have a baby. And to please her love, Toyotama-hime promised to bring him a strong young son, because she loved him that much. But Toyotama-hime made Hoori promise something in return."_

"_What?" exclaimed Chibi-Usa._

"_She made him promise not to look upon her while she was giving birth to their son," Rei told her. "It was very important to her. Hoori could see this, so he gave his word of honor to please her and to ease her mind. Even though he couldn't for the life of him guess why, he made the promise to her."_

_Chibi-Usa darkened. "He kept it, didn't he?" And again the priest marveled at just how bright this little girl was._

"_He wanted to," Rei said. "He truly wanted to. But at the moment of the birth, he heard his wife name their son Ugayakukiaezu. His eagerness to see his new son and his curiosity over why Toyotama-hime had made him promise not to look upon her got the better of him. Hoori peeked behind the curtain," and Rei paused dramatically, "and what do you think he saw?"_

"_What?" Chibi-Usa asked, hopelessly hooked by the story._

"_He saw his wife's true form," Rei said solemnly. "She was a sea dragon."_

_The little Princess's eyes popped._

"_Hoori gasped in shock, for he was human and such things were beyond his imagination," Rei continued. "And in that moment, Toyotama-hime saw him. She saw his shock and his fear. She felt humiliated and ashamed - - and betrayed. Abandoning the baby, Toyotama-hime fled back to the sea and her father's castle, never to return."_

"_Never?" Chibi-Usa asked, her eyes beginning to water. "But - - what about her little baby?"_

* * *

><p>Because of their late night, the senshi all slept in that morning. The sun was high in the east when Sailor Moon emerged from her sleeping spot in the open shelter Ceres had fashioned. Through one eye forced open by sheer determination, she could see Saturn cooking something. Pallas and Vesta were near. Pallas was very loudly demanding her favorite sugary cereal for breakfast and was in no mood to take any arguments. Vesta showed remarkable patience with her, something she normally didn't demonstrate with others.<p>

Suddenly Sailor Moon was swept into the arms of someone, a man by feel. Just as his lips met hers, Sailor Moon realized that it was Helios. Startled at first, Sailor Moon quickly warmed to the kiss. After what felt like an eternity that ended much too soon, they parted and a sigh escaped her.

"That should wake me up," Sailor Moon grinned.

"Did you sleep well, Maiden?" Helios asked, an ardor to his demeanor that she found exciting.

"You know I did," she volleyed back.

Arm in arm, the couple turned to join the others. Sailor Moon could see Saturn and Pallas staring at her with huge grins, while Vesta seemed indifferent. Basking in their glow, she and Helios walked over.

"Smells good," Sailor Moon told Saturn, as if nothing had happened. "Where are Ceres and Juno?"

"Washing up," Saturn answered.

"Ceres is taking a bath," Pallas reported. "Juno said that was a good idea and that she'd join her. Pallas is going to take one after breakfast," and then she scowled, "which ISN'T Sugar Bombs!"

"Uh, yeah, thanks for the update, Pallas," Sailor Moon grinned. That was when she noticed a man and a woman from the village approaching.

"You are the one who repaired our village?" the man asked. He was lean and dark, about forty, a man used to working in the sun for long periods. His hair was white with a few thin streaks of black running through. He was carrying a basket of food. "The one who healed those hurt in the attack?"

"Yes," Sailor Moon answered curiously.

"The one who aids Urusham?" asked the woman. She was shorter, but lean and brown as well from working outdoors. Her hair was white and pulled back into a utilitarian ponytail.

"Was there something else I can help you with?" the Princess asked.

The man hesitated, searching for a delicate way to put his next words. Sailor Moon could tell by his manner that he was afraid of offending her.

"Please stop," the woman spoke up, less afraid of offense. "Aiding Urusham, I mean."

This surprised her. "But," stammered Sailor Moon, "I thought Urusham was one of your own."

"He is," the man nodded. "We are a simple people. We fish. We hunt. We grow vegetables. Urusham provided much. He was a great hunter, like his birth father before him. Yes, we know the story."

"He was a great asset," the woman added, "until his father - - his true father, rather than his birth father - - died. Something changed in him. He became obsessed with his birth mother, the Princess Mellebet. He no longer hunts. He no longer provides."

"I know it's a burden, but he's going through a difficult time," Sailor Moon offered.

"His true father was a great fisherman," the man shrugged. "When he died, we coped. It is the way of things. When Urusham stopped hunting, we coped." He sighed. "But now he brings the wrath of Mellebet and her father upon us. Before we lived in peace with the merwyn. We shared the land, shared the game and did not disturb each other."

"Urusham changed this," the woman said with a hint of bitterness. "He angered the merwyn and they brought their wrath down upon us. I, myself, lost two sisters in their last attack. What if they attack again? We have no defense against them!"

"How is not aiding Urusham going to change that?" Sailor Moon asked.

"If you stop aiding Urusham," the woman said coldly, "then Mellebet will kill him - - and it will be done. The merwyn will leave us alone."

"You'd sacrifice Urusham to save yourselves?" Sailor Moon asked in astonishment.

"Does Urusham not sacrifice us," the woman shot back, "to gain his audience with Mellebet? He is the one who will not yield. Better he dies than all of us."

The man could see Sailor Moon wasn't happy hearing this. "We ask only as a practical solution. We are a people used to surviving by any means necessary. And as was said, we cannot defend against the merwyn, nor do we think that you will spend your lives defending us. Again, we thank you for your work on our behalf. All that we have is yours to share for as long as you choose to stay." And he guided the woman away, leaving Sailor Moon and the senshi stunned.

"How pragmatic a reaction," Helios commented. Sailor Moon stared.

"Maybe that's the only way thing will settle down around here," Vesta commented as Ceres and Juno strolled up. "Urusham has to give up, one way or the other." She glanced at Sailor Moon. "And you have to make him see that - - with the Moon Tier."

"No, I can't give in to a quick fix," the Princess protested. "Otherwise this will all just blow up again after we leave!"

"Now who's being stubborn?" Vesta muttered.

Sailor Moon felt the touch of a hand on her arm. She looked to Helios, sitting next to her, and he pointed her to the rocky incline by the cave Katyr resided in. Katyr had emerged from the cave and was headed for the forest. There was something about his demeanor that seemed different to the pink-tressed Princess, as if he had come to a decision. By now everybody was looking his way.

"Where do you suppose he's off to?" Juno wondered out loud.

"Want me to follow him?" Vesta asked. But Sailor Moon held up her index finger, signaling Vesta to wait.

"Pallas," she began, "can you 'hear' any part of what he's thinking?"

Pallas closed her eyes. She was silent for a few moments. By then Katyr had disappeared into the thick trees. Everyone waited tensely.

"Mr. Katyr-Sir is going to the castle of the flying doggies," Pallas reported.

"Do you know why?" Sailor Moon asked.

"No. Pallas couldn't hear that part."

"OK, Vesta," Sailor Moon nodded. "But don't let him know he's being followed."

"He won't have a clue," Vesta boasted. "Fauna Assimilation - - Black Mamba."

Ceres recoiled as Vesta changed into a fourteen foot Black Mamba snake. She gave the snake plenty of room. At top speed, Vesta slithered off and was gone in seconds.

"Honestly, I think she did that just to scare me," muttered Ceres.

"Did anyone check to see if Urusham was still in his house?" Sailor Moon asked. When no one answered, she turned to Pallas. "Pallas, could you check? See if you can sense him anywhere near here?"

Again Pallas closed her eyes. She concentrated for a few moments, then opened her eyes and looked at her Princess. The expression on her face told enough.

"Pallas can't hear him in the village," she reported.

"Great. No telling what he's up to," Sailor Moon sighed. "OK, Ceres, question the plants around his house. See if you can get a direction he went in. Try to pick up his trail from that."

"OK," Ceres nodded. "But it might take longer than usual. The plants on this world are just so stuck up and boorish!" She gobbled down the rest of her breakfast and headed off.

"Juno, go with her," the Princess added. "She could probably - - use the company, you know? This soon after. . ."

"Yeah, I get you," Juno nodded and moved to join her fellow senshi.

"So what can we do?" Saturn ventured.

"Until I know what's going on," Sailor Moon replied, "all we can do is wait."

Vesta slithered through the tall grasses of the plain between the forest and the merwyn castle. With her coloring, the grasses were the perfect concealment. No one would see her unless they actually stepped on her. As for tracking Katyr, once she caught up with him, she could follow him through the vibrations on the ground she felt in her body and in the cues she picked up from the tongue she repeatedly stuck out. Vesta could tell he was headed for the river.

Unfortunately this form proved too limited. She had originally chosen a Black Mamba so as not to be vulnerable to a predator. But she needed to hear better than a snake could hear. Transforming into a gray fox, Vesta sniffed at the air. Spotting Katyr's scent instantly, she was off again.

Katyr approached the bank of the river which surrounded the castle grounds. When he was twenty feet from the bank, he stopped. The sentries above perched on the walls of the castle and looked down at him menacingly.

"Away, human!" growled one of the sentries. "You are not wanted here!"

Ignoring the sentries, Katyr looked up past the top of the wall to a window in one of the inner spires. His hand came up and cupped to one side of his mouth.

"MELLEBET!" he shouted. Vesta got on her communicator to inform Sailor Moon.

"I SAID AWAY, HUMAN!" roared the sentry. "LEAVE NOW BEFORE I DEVOUR YOU!"

"MELLEBET!" Katyr shouted again. He expelled a breath. "It is past time we settled this."

The sentries were about to launch themselves into the air. But an unseen force stopped them. They turned and looked back behind the walls of the castle, and then backed down.

Rising up from behind the wall was a merwyn larger than the sentries. Gliding down in a spiral pattern, the beast landed on the bank of the river just fifteen feet from Katyr. He didn't move, looking at her placidly. Princess Mellebet folded in her wings and stared balefully at the robed man.

"So, Urutarga," Mellebet said disdainfully. "You've learned not to look upon me with the superstitious fear of your kind."

"I have spent the last twenty cycles learning about the world around us," Katyr replied calmly, "and about myself and my flaws. I am not the ignorant hunter you were once wed to, Mellebet."

"And am I to now rekindle the love I once had for you and throw myself at your feet, oh Urutarga the mighty hunter?" Mellebet demanded. "That love is gone. YOU killed it. You wounded me that day, Urutarga. The scar runs deep within me and it will never go away."

"And for that I apologize," Katyr replied. "I have learned many things on my journey to enlightenment, but the one thing I or any creature can never learn is how to undo what has been done."

Mellebet didn't respond. There was still anger in her eyes, but he could see that his words had struck a cord in the Princess.

"Have you nothing more to say, Mellebet?" Katyr asked.

"What would you have me say? Your penance eases my pain a bit. But there is still too much ill between us, ill that you brought about."

"And if you had told me," Katyr replied, "rather than keep it from me, perhaps things would have been different."

"You would have reacted the same no matter what!" charged Mellebet.

"But we would have not brought a son into the world," Katyr countered, "for us both to abandon." Mellebet stared at him, stung. "Neither of our hands are clean in this matter, Mellebet. I betrayed your trust and you deceived mine."

"I WILL NOT LISTEN TO THIS!" roared Mellebet. But Katyr held up a small carved amulet clasped between his first and second finger and the beast stopped in her tracks.

"Your rage does not intimidate me, Mellebet," Katyr stated. "Nor does the painful death you promise for me. I died twenty years ago - - the day I drove my Princess away."

Mellebet glared, held at bay by the amulet.

"Meet with Urusham. I do not ask for myself," Katyr began. "The isolation is no more than I deserve. But Urusham deserves none of your hatred."

"No," Mellebet shook her head, trembling. "Do not ask that of me."

"Have I made you that bitter?"

The merwyn looked down, quaking in fury. "How can I face him now? I shunned him for so long because his very existence reminded me of that moment when my happy life turned to ashes."

"But you can face Katyr," came a voice from the distance. Everyone turned and found Sailor Moon slowly approaching, flanked by three of her senshi and Helios. "And I have to imagine that he reminds you of what happened a lot more sharply than Urusham ever could."

"THIS DOES NOT CONCERN YOU!" Mellebet demanded angrily.

"Princess Mellebet, Urusham only wishes to meet the mother he never knew. I imagine he'll have some tough questions for you. I know it will be painful, for him and particularly for you." She gestured to the woods and then up to the castle. "But how much pain has already come of this? How many wounded did your kind suffer in the attack on the village by the river? How many humans? How many husbands and wives and children died? You can end this."

"What care I for humans?" Mellebet asked.

"You cared for one once," Sailor Moon answered. "Yes, it brought you pain, but as Katyr pointed out it was a painful ending that you contributed to as much as he did. And it also brought you a son, a son you might even love and be proud of if you could find the strength to put aside your pride long enough to meet him and get to know him."

Mellebet was silent. No one could guess her thoughts.

"You named him Urusham," Katyr spoke up. "I heard you. I heard the joy in your voice when you beheld him. It's partly why I entered the room in spite of my vow. I wanted to see him. I wanted to see the being that could inspire such joy in you, joy that up until then had been my province alone." Katyr grew emotional. "I wanted to share it."

"Princess," Vesta said in a low voice. "Incoming."

They all looked up. Another merwyn was passing through the main gate of the castle. He was massive, dwarfing Mellebet. His head was held high and he walked as if his path was his divine right.

"Father," Mellebet whispered. But the King walked past her. He was focused solely on Sailor Moon. Saturn and Vesta tensed visibly, ready to defend her, while Pallas smiled at the King with child-like innocence. Sailor Moon stood her ground.

"SO ONCE MORE YOU DELVE INTO THING THAT ARE NOT YOUR CONCERN," King Toren asked pointedly.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," Sailor Moon replied courteously, "but I will always consider disputes that can be settled peacefully to be my concern."

"MY DAUGHTER HAS EXPRESSED HER DESIRE NOT TO BE INCLUDED IN YOUR ATTEMPTS TO MEDIATE," Toren said archly. "YET YOU PERSIST. . ."

"Thank you for extending your grace into this situation, Father," Mellebet said bitterly. "I tire of it. You, strange princess, will not seek me out again. I have listened to your words and reject them." She glanced at Katyr. "And you, Urutarga. You have contact with Urusham. Tell him to give up his quest. Tell him to stay away. Tell him, for if we meet, I will end his bothersome presence permanently."

Off she walked into the castle. Toren, to everyone's surprise, hug his head.

"I SHOULD HAVE MADE HER GO BACK," Toren murmured.

"To Urusham?" Sailor Moon asked.

"I SHOULD HAVE MADE HER TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR HIM LONG AGO, WHEN HE WAS AN INFANT," the mighty merwyn said. "BUT I WAS AFRAID SHE WOULD KILL - - MY GRANDCHILD - - IN A FIT OF PIQUE." He looked at Sailor Moon for the first time. "YES, I SPOIL HER. BUT SHE IS MY DAUGHTER. THANK THE SPIRITS THAT AKISHAM MATURED."

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," Sailor Moon spoke up. "Were you aware that Mellebet has Akisham imprisoned in the lower level cells?"

King Toren's eyes narrowed. "WHY WOULD YOU SAY THIS?"

"It's true. She wants to keep Akisham and Urusham apart. They're in love."

Toren's gaze hardened. The great beast turned and entered the castle. The door closed behind him. Instantly Sailor Moon was on her communicator.

"Juno, have you two got Urusham located?" she asked.

There was no response.

"Juno? Ceres?" Sailor Moon asked urgently.

Continued in Chapter 9


	9. Blood Vow

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 9: "Blood Vow"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>Sailor Juno and Sailor Ceres hiked up the path leading them to the summit of the rocky incline that bordered the forest and the village by the river. The path itself was not very worn, indicating most people chose to walk around the rocky formation than to climb over it. Right now, Sailor Ceres was gaining an appreciation of that logic. Pulling herself up onto the ledge above her, she gained a foothold and steadied herself for the climb still ahead of her. Though not all of the path was rough and jagged, this broken stretch was more than enough for her.<p>

"Are we still on the right path, Ceres?" Juno asked, looking back from the ledge above. She saw Ceres struggling with her climb. "You need a hand?"

"I need my head examined!" Ceres fussed. Finding footholds, she pushed herself up to the ledge Juno was on, then onto the ledge. She expelled a dramatic breath.

"Come on," Juno told her. "It's just like climbing the trapeze pole back in the circus."

"No, it's not," Ceres replied pointedly. "The trapeze pole had metal rungs that were solid and evenly spaced, going in a straight line." She dusted off her knee. "And the trapeze pole wasn't dirty."

"You're just out of shape," Juno smirked.

"I am NOT out of shape," Ceres corrected her. "Just because I don't have the skills of a mountain goat doesn't mean I'm out of shape. It's the thin air, too. Remember what Saturn said when we first landed here."

Having caught her breath, Ceres and Juno continued on. The path ahead was more defined, and the only exertion Ceres felt was in her knees.

"So why don't you just get the plants to hand you up?" Juno asked.

"Believe me, I asked," Ceres replied. Then she rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to repeat what they said. Earth vegetation is SO much more refined and intelligent than the vegetation on this planet."

"They are telling you where Urusham is, aren't they?" Juno wondered.

"Yes."

"Can you trust them? If they're this rude. . ."

"Plants don't know how to lie," Ceres assured her. "Lying is a purely human trait that plants, thankfully, have never learned." They continued on. "So why not have some water spout carry us up?"

"Not enough water," Juno told her. "There's just enough water in these rock formations to keep these scrub plants alive. Certainly not enough to lift the two of us. And the river's too far for a spout to reach the top of this rocky range. Maybe if there were some low-hanging clouds . . ."

"Just as well," Ceres sighed. "The water would probably mess up my hair."

The two senshi continued climbing, each one secretly wishing their senshi uniform boots were a pair of hiking boots. At one point, Ceres stumbled and narrowly avoided twisting her ankle from her experience as a circus performer. Finally the two reached the top of the rocky summit. They looked down over the valley below. The forest was thick on this side as it was at the bottom near the cave where Katyr lived.

"Hey, there's the castle," Juno pointed out. In the distance, beyond the forest, was the merwyn castle and the grassy plain that surrounded it. "And I think that's Katyr near the castle. Sounds like he's shouting something, but I can't make it out. I don't see Vesta, though."

"I'd be disappointed if you did see her," Ceres said. "If there's one thing you can say about Vesta, she knows how to trail someone and not be seen. I'm sure she's in there somewhere." Ceres looked around. "No plants up here to ask. I guess we're going to have to find Urusham ourselves."

"We should probably go in that direction first," Juno reasoned, gesturing toward the castle.

"Why that way?"

"Why would Urusham come up here in the first place?" Juno proposed. "The most logical reason would be to have a vantage point where he could keep the castle under surveillance."

Ceres thought a moment. "Sounds logical. Let's go." The two senshi headed out. "I wonder what kind of mood he's in?"

"Hopefully he's calmed down from the last time we saw him," Juno mused.

"Seeing your fellow villagers slaughtered isn't something you calm down from," Ceres said. "But I hope you're right."

As they approached the edge of the summit, Ceres and Juno could see Urusham's burly figure in the distance. They could also see the hang glider sitting near him. It didn't take a student of Sun Tsu to figure out what Urusham planned. As they approached, Urusham seemed unaware of them, his attention occupied by the castle in the distance. Seeing Urusham's head perk up made them wonder if he'd heard them, but he kept staring off at the castle. But without warning, he jumped to his feet, turned around and drew his sword, all in one swift motion. The two senshi froze in their tracks.

"Did your Princess send you to find me?" Urusham asked. He turned away from them to resume looking at the events outside the castle, but he didn't sheath his sword.

"She's kind of worried about you," Juno offered. "What state of mind you're in, you know?"

"What does she fear I will do?" Urusham replied vaguely.

"Something rash and stupid," Juno said bluntly. "As rash and as stupid as King Toren's attack on the village."

"I plan nothing rash," Urusham said without looking at her. "And if avenging the innocent dead, killed for no other reason than they were human and easy targets, is stupid . . ." He trailed off, revealing no more.

"So that's what the glider is for?" Ceres asked. "I thought you wanted to talk to your mother."

"I doubt my mother will speak to me with the blood of her father upon my blade," Urusham said. "A small loss, since she will not speak to me now."

"Urusham, vengeance isn't going to help anything," Ceres told him. "It won't raise the dead and it won't ease the suffering of the survivors. It'll just give the merwyn a new excuse to kill."

"The merwyn," Urusham repeated the word bitterly. "By the Great Spirit, I wish I had never heard the name. If it weren't for Akisham, I would pray that the entire race were expunged from the world." Something caught his eye. Noticing, Juno and Ceres strained to look.

"Who is that with Katyr?" Juno asked.

"Mother," Urusham whispered urgently. "She's finally been pried from her hiding place!"

Urusham lunged for his glider, but Juno intercepted him and grasped his arm. The burly hunter pulled away from her grip and glared at her.

"Don't go through with this," Juno advised him. "You're thinking with anger, which means you're not thinking clearly."

"She meets with Katyr, but she will not meet with me?" Urusham seethed. "Katyr is nothing to her! He is a village shaman! I am her son!"

"In the state you're in, going down there will only make things worse," Juno reiterated to him. She positioned herself between Urusham and his glider. Recognizing the danger, Ceres felt a familiar adrenal reaction in her body and the accompanying tension.

In response, Urusham reached out and shoved Juno aside with ease. The senshi tumbled to the ground and rolled helplessly for several feet before being able to stop herself. Reflexively Ceres reached for a pouch of seeds in order to stimulate them into a restraining vine.

Then she realized that they were on a summit of rock and there was no place for her vine to take root. Fear began to grip her. What was she going to do? She couldn't just abdicate her mission and let Urusham go. In his current state, that might lead to war. But taking him on in his current state might get her injured or worse.

"Urusham!" barked Juno, scrambling to her feet. Urusham ignored her and grabbed for the glider. "Aqua Initiation!"

Drawing all the moisture she could from the air at the higher elevation, Juno was able to form a single water globe about the size of a baseball. She launched it and it struck Urusham on the side of the head, staggering him. While he recovered, Juno positioned herself between Urusham and the glider. She strained to form another water globe, but there just wasn't enough water at their higher elevation and the river was too far away.

"Juno!" gasped Ceres.

Alerted by Ceres' cry, Juno saw Urusham's advance. The hunter swung the flat of his sword, trying to drive Juno away more than injure her. Using the acrobatics taught her in the Dead Moon Circus, Juno executed a back flip to avoid the sword, then landed, pushed off and launched herself at Urusham. Before he could recover, Juno seized his wrist and flipped him over her hip, twisting the wrist in hopes of forcing him to release the sword, as Kino Sensei had taught them in training. Urusham landed hard on the rocky ground, but he wouldn't release the sword.

Using brute strength, Urusham twisted out of Juno's grip. Juno threw several kicks at him as he struggled to rise, but the hunter fended them off. All the while, Ceres tried to ignore the pounding of her heart and searched for something she could use to help Juno with. At once, she seized upon it: The glider.

Racing over to the glider, Ceres grasped the edges of one wing and tried to pitch it over the side of the mountain. There would be no attack if Urusham had no means of reaching the castle. What Ceres hadn't counted on was aerodynamics. The glider flipped over onto its top and came to rest several feet from its original spot. Ceres moved to flip it again, but her arm was seized by Urusham. His grip was like iron. Ceres tried to kick his knee as Kino Sensei had taught her, but she hadn't been as attentive as Juno and the kick lacked any damaging force. Urusham flung her away and Ceres landed hard on the rocky surface.

"I have no quarrel with either of you," Urusham warned them, using one hand to right the glider as he held his sword in the other, "save that you seek to bar me from my goal. Stand down while you still can! I will not be barred from my mother any longer!"

"And Toren?" Juno demanded.

"Aye, I will settle with Toren as well, for many things," Urusham declared. "But first things first. I will speak with my mother and I will know why she rejects me!"

"You attack the merwyn and you're only going to draw more retaliation down onto the village by the river!" Juno shouted at him. "Don't those innocent lives mean anything to you? Or don't they matter, as long as you get what you want?"

Urusham looked at her coldly. "And if I strike King Toren down, then there will be no order to retaliate."

"If you strike Toren down," Juno argued, "the merwyn won't need an order!"

Urusham turned away from the argument and sought to launch his hang glider. Desperately Juno threw her hands up into the air, threw her head back and bellowed to the sky.

"Aqua Initiation," she cried, "Pour Down Rain!"

The winds picked up. Clouds above them began to darken. Through sheer desperation, Juno was gathering all of the moisture in the area. It formed into the clouds above them, darkening them as they gained mass and closed out the sun. Urusham stopped and looked up at the rapidly deteriorating weather. A heavy rain would be suicide to glide in, the winds and the water making navigation hazardous. A downpour, as Juno was trying for, would make using the glider impossible. Urusham looked to the heavens and then to Juno. He realized that she was responsible for the sudden change.

Putting the glider down, Urusham walked over to her. A fist lashed out like a cobra striking. Juno tried to block it, but the fist connected with her jaw. She went down like she'd been shot, crumpling in a heap onto the ground. Urusham glanced over to Ceres, but she was still down. Satisfied that there would be no more interference, Urusham walked back and picked up the glider. He glanced up at the sky. The clouds still hung over them, but they weren't worsening. He looked down. Not only were Mellebet and Katyr there, but they had been joined by the Earth princess and her band. And was it - - yes, King Toren as well.

The time was now. Urusham balanced himself on the hang glider's crossbar and launched himself from the rocky summit.

* * *

><p>"Juno? Ceres?" Sailor Moon asked urgently. There was no response. She could feel her anxiety go up along with that of her team. "Vesta! Pallas! Home in on them! Check it out!"<p>

Vesta nodded. "Fauna assimilation, Pegasus!" She had no sooner transformed into a winged horse than Pallas scrambled onto her back. The senshi launched into the air and flew off, guided by her senshi communicator and Pallas's telepathic abilities.

"She was never this willful," Katyr mumbled in shock. "Mellebet was a kind and loving spirit. I thought I could reach that spirit. How could she change so?"

"Love, with the proper motivation, can easily be turned to hatred," Helios said to him. "Bitterness can infest and blacken any memory, any emotion, particularly if left to fester."

"You speak with wisdom for one so young," Katyr replied. "Tell me. What do I do? How do I make this up to Mellebet? How do I provide now for the son I abandoned? How do I end this thing and absolve the sin I committed, the sin which has haunted my life?"

"Would that I could tell you," Helios offered. "Some put their hearts beyond the reach of regretful words and conciliatory acts. We can only try."

"What do you think Toren is going to do?" Saturn asked Sailor Moon.

"I don't know," she answered, "but he didn't seem too happy that Mellebet is meddling in Akisham's life. If she's determined to force Toren to choose between them in her blind rage, she may not get the answer she's expecting." She engaged her communicator. "Anything yet, Pallas? Vesta?"

"Pallas can hear Ceres," Pallas reported. "She thinks Ceres is beddy-bye." There was a pause. "Juno is beddy-bye, too."

"Spotted them yet, Vesta?"

"Still on the trail," Vesta came back, "but the beacon is coming in. I'm heading for a cloud formation over that small mountain range. It could be one of Juno's."

"Let me know when you find something," Sailor Moon told them. She closed the communicator and let out a worried breath. "This whole mission has become one gigantic headache."

"Do not give in to despair, Maiden," Helios offered. "Large problems do not have easy answers."

"And Ceres and Juno are probably all right," added Saturn.

"I hope," Sailor Moon mused. "But Mellebet has these merwyn on a hair trigger and now Urusham is loose. There's no telling what he's got in mind."

* * *

><p>Mellebet stalked into her room within the castle's east turret. A sentry and attendant trailed her.<p>

"Does the Princess require anything?" asked the attendant.

"No!" Mellebet snapped angrily. "Leave me!"

The attendant backed from the room, but the sentry lingered.

"I said leave me," Mellebet told him.

"But Princess, your father . . ." the sentry began.

"I SAID LEAVE ME!"

The sentry nodded and backed out of the room. Mellebet turned and shook with fury before she regained control of herself. The merwyn walked over to the window and peered down over the grassy plain between the castle and the forest. Katyr, Sailor Moon and Sailor Saturn were headed away from the castle.

"You think that an apology twenty years too late is enough?" Mellebet muttered to herself as she stared. "And a half-hearted effort at that, seeking to make me share the burden of what happened. You should not have betrayed your word to me, Urutarga. You should not have humiliated me. You should not have gazed upon me with such shock and revulsion," and she swallowed, "as if I were beneath you. You, a human!"

And, unbidden, the memory of that day returned to her. She thought about the human child she had given birth to, cradled against the matted fur of her hind legs and crying in protest over the rude way he had been expelled from his safe, warm environment. She recalled how the name came to her: "Urusham", which meant power and grace, for that was what she saw in the red little figure huddled against her.

And always the next memory would come, of Urutarga staring at her as if she were some - - some thing. Her teeth ground together.

She was about to speak. But at once, the canine caught the scent coming from the other room.

"Come out! Now, or I will come in and slay you!" barked Mellebet.

A curtain parted. Leisurely Urusham walked out, his sword drawn and ready to use should the merwyn attack. There was no fear in his eyes. Only determination.

"Mother," he said, a slight accusatory tone to his voice. "How good it is to finally meet you."

Continued in Chapter 10


	10. Dour Reunion

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 10: "Dour Reunion"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>Circling back in the direction Pallas was pointing to with much animation, Vesta looked for a place near the prone figures of her two sister senshi to land. It was tricky, as the summit was not that wide and the air currents at that elevation were swirling and treacherous. As she touched down, a sudden gust made her stumble. Pallas was nearly thrown and only the bracing of Vesta's wings against both the air currents and Pallas kept them all safe. Pallas slid down off of Vesta and ran over to Juno.<p>

"Vesta, Juno is hurt!" Pallas exclaimed. "Please help her!"

"Uh," Vesta stammered, "Hell, I ain't no doctor, Pallas! I don't know what to do!"

"But Juno could die!" wailed Pallas. "And Ceres, too!"

"I'm not going to die," Ceres muttered, struggling to a sitting position. "Believe me, I know what that feels like."

"But what about Juno?" Pallas demanded anxiously.

Ceres frowned, for thinking was still a little difficult for her with the pounding in her head. "Uh, Vesta, think you can handle all three of us?"

"I've done it before."

"OK, Pallas, use your mind to lift Juno onto Vesta's back," Ceres instructed. As Pallas complied, Ceres exhaled loudly. "Where's Urusham?"

"He do this to you?" Vesta grunted. Ceres grimaced. Just what she didn't need, Vesta flying off the handle.

"He was going to visit the castle on a hang glider," Ceres sighed. "We tried to stop him and - - he objected." She got to her feet gingerly. "Does it look bad? My face, I mean."

"Nothing a cold pack wouldn't help," Vesta replied as Pallas stretched Juno across her back. Ceres started to climb on.

"Pallas will help you," Pallas said.

"I'm not crippled . . ." Ceres began.

"PALLAS WILL HELP YOU!"

Ceres held up her hands in surrender. She felt the invisible telekinetic hand scoop her up from behind and gently deposit her on Vesta's back. Ceres reached down and hoisted Pallas up onto the equine by the hand.

"Pallas is sorry for yelling," Pallas said contritely. "But Ceres was going to argue and Juno may not have time for arguments."

"She's got you there," Vesta chuckled.

"Go find Saturn," Ceres scowled.

* * *

><p>"Urusham," Mellebet spoke with the low whisper of someone fearing to invoke the wrath of the gods. Then she hardened. "You are persistent. Very well, what do you want of me? I would be quit of this entire situation."<p>

"I would know why, Mother," Urusham replied, bitterness coloring his tone. "Why you abandoned me? Why you despise me to this day? What did I do? What did I not do?"

Mellebet glared at him, frustration more than shame figuring in her expression. "How much of your origins do you know?"

"I know I am your son, by a human father," Urusham replied. "I know you abandoned me at birth because my father somehow wronged you. The man who raised me told me that much." His stare bore holes in the merwyn. "He never said why."

"Pride," Mellebet responded. "Anger. Humiliation. Urusham, your birth was the end of my happiness. You are a constant reminder of that fact."

"I don't understand," Urusham seethed. "What about ME did you despise? The responsibility? Was it the fact that I was human? Did you find me abhorrent to look upon?"

"Yes," Mellebet replied. Her voice was cold. "You reminded me of your father, he who betrayed me. You remind me to this day of the look on his face, that look of shock and horror, of revulsion that he had lay with a-a beast. You look now so much like he did then that you bring the pain flooding back to me." She looked away to gather her emotions and to avoid his face. "I was young and ill-equipped to handle such things. I ran away, from him, from you, from his people - - from the world. For I just could not look upon you and not think of him and of that moment."

"So what should I do, Mother? How can I get you to accept me?" Urusham asked plaintively. "Should I scar my face so that it no longer reminds you of him?"

"I'll not begrudge you your bitterness, boy," Mellebet told him without looking at him. "You were blameless in all of this, and yet you bear as much burden for what happened as the man you now know as Katyr. Would that I could make this different . . ."

"Wait," Urusham interrupted. "Katyr?"

"That is the name Urutarga goes by now, is it not? Your father," Mellebet said. "Did he not tell you?"

"Katyr," Urusham spoke with a haunted voice, "is my father?"

"What gods did you anger, boy?" Mellebet asked. "I am amazed he did not tell you upon his return to this area, and yet I am not. Personal honor is indeed a mercurial thing to he who was once Urutarga."

Urusham stood there trying to comprehend the news. As he stood, Akisham entered her sister's room.

"Urusham!" she gasped, amazed that he had gained access to the castle and afraid for his safety. Mellebet glanced at her younger sister and something galvanized in her.

"Akisham!" she barked. "What are you doing here? I ordered you confined . . .!"

"Father chose to free me," Akisham shot back defiantly. She started for Urusham.

"STAY BACK FROM HIM!" shouted Mellebet.

"Mellebet, I love him!" Akisham protested.

"NO!" demanded the Princess. "I will not see my sister make the same mistake I made with these - - these . . .!"

"Humans?" Akisham asked pointedly. "You condemn an entire race because one hurt you? You seek to deny me happiness because you refuse to ever find any again?"

"DO NOT DEFY ME ON THIS!" commanded Mellebet, her lips pulling back from canine teeth.

"Do not make me choose, Mellebet," Akisham said, her voice quavering with emotion. "I will choose him."

With that, Mellebet lunged at Akisham, teeth bared. Akisham crouched and spread her wings, baring her teeth to defend herself. But Mellebet's charge was cut short as she narrowly avoided the slash of a sword. She turned on Urusham and found her son pointing the sword at her.

"Do not force me to slay you," he warned, "'Mother'. For Akisham is more precious to me than my life - - or yours. I would hope for your blessing, but I will love her just the same without it."

"Akisham, I know the spell you function under. Heed me. You will regret it if you take up with one of them. The mixing of merwyn and human can only bring you sorrow." She turned to Urusham, hatred choking her soul. "Nothing has changed. I am your mother by birth only. I make no claim upon you and I will recognize no claim you make upon me. I do not have the desire to be what you might wish me to be."

"Then we will leave," Akisham said. "Come, Urusham, I will see you safely out of the castle."

"Yes," Urusham nodded. "I have some questions for Katyr."

"Akisham, if you leave," Mellebet began desperately.

"Still you persist?" Akisham asked derisively. "I already told you whom I would choose." Mellebet clenched her teeth.

"Do not come back, Urusham," Mellebet told him. "There is nothing more for you here."

* * *

><p>In the small shelter near the river, Saturn focused her healing power on Sailor Juno while Ceres related what had happened in their confrontation with Urusham.<p>

"And the last thing I remember was hearing a loud 'smack' and Juno groaning," Ceres mumbled in embarrassment. "I didn't see what happened. I wasn't kind of seeing very well at the time."

"So Urusham probably used that hang glider to infiltrate the merwyn palace," Sailor Moon pondered grimly.

"Or he's already lunch for one or more of those merwyn guards," Vesta added.

"We'd better head out for the palace. Ceres, you stay here with Juno . . ."

"Pallas knows," Sailor Pallas said suddenly. She had a flat, faraway tone to her voice.

"I think she's having a vision," Ceres assessed.

With that, Pallas put her hands behind her back and brought out two dolls. They were crudely formed out of mud and bark, but one was a stick figure of a man and the other was a four-legged beast with wings.

"Why don't you like me, Mommy?" Pallas said in a deep voice, wiggling the human figurine.

"I don't like your Daddy," Pallas replied, using a higher voice and wiggling the merwyn figurine, "and you look like him, so I don't like you."

"What do I do to make you like me?" Pallas spoke for the human figurine.

"Nothing," Pallas said, wiggling the merwyn figurine. "Mommy can't love you. You have to go now." She leaned the human figurine forward, as if it was forlornly looking at the floor, then mimicked it leaving. The vision done, Pallas seemed to come back to reality. A tear dribbled down her cheek. "Poor Mister Urusham-Sir," she whispered.

A pall seemed to drape over the senshi. It was punctured only by Juno rising to a sitting position.

"Well, he got his answer," Vesta muttered. "Suppose that'll be the end of it?"

Sailor Moon turned and walked out into the open, her arms folded across her chest. Helios followed and found her staring into the distance.

"Not the ending you had hoped for, Maiden?" he asked.

"Everybody wants a happy ending," she responded. "But I suppose it's worth a little personal pain if it achieves peace for all." She turned and looked at Helios. "Right?"

"Do not take it as a defeat, Maiden," Helios counseled her. "You cannot make someone love you. If Urusham is strong and wise, as strong and as wise as I think him to be, he will move on from this blow."

"And if he's not?" she asked.

"Then he will be destroyed by it, or use it to destroy," Helios replied. "It is the way of things, Maiden, that sometimes the happiness of one may be the sorrow of another."

A movement caught the corner of Sailor Moon's eye. She turned and saw Katyr had emerged from his cave. The shaman was looking off into the forest, as if he expected something. Immediately wary of this, Sailor Moon began walking toward him, Helios in close step behind her. Several of the villagers were attracted by this as well and edged closer to see what was going to happen.

Emerging from the forest was Urusham, walking at a determined pace. Sailor Moon recognized Akisham in her human form following behind him. She seemed to be trying to reason with him, but he was not hearing it. Warning bells began to go off in the senshi's head and she quickened her pace.

"Urusham, what happened?" Sailor Moon demanded.

But Urusham pushed past her. Katyr stood placidly, unafraid and unaffected by the hunter's clear belligerence. When Urusham got within arm's reach of Katyr, he swung his mighty fist and knocked the shaman to the ground. Katyr remained down as Urusham stood over him.

"WHY?" Urusham bellowed down at the fallen man. "Why did you not tell me? Why did you abandon me to your brother? Did I shame you that much?"

When Katyr didn't respond, Urusham lunged for him again. Only the combined might of Sailor Moon, Akisham and Helios was able to restrain him. He struggled in a white hot rage to get loose from them. Katyr stayed down.

"The shame was mine," Katyr said finally. "I had, in a single moment of weakness, destroyed the happiest time of my life."

"So you ran?" Urusham fumed.

"I tried to care for you," Katyr explained. "But I was in such a state, I could scarcely care for myself. Kallisio saw it. He saw I was more of a threat to your safety through neglect than anything. He offered to care for you as if you were his own son." Emotion swept Katyr's face. "Blessed be he. Kallisio saved two lives that day - - three, because he came to love you as few men have loved their sons. I think it gave him even more reason to live than he had before."

Urusham stopped struggling and just looked at his father with contempt.

"And what did you do?" Sailor Moon asked. The other senshi, lured by the noise, stood nearby and listened.

"Became a wanderer," Katyr recalled. "At first as penance for my ignorance. I vowed to never know happiness. It was an easy vow to keep. But as time passed, I saw a purpose to my wanderings. It was my ignorance that destroyed my happiness, so I would destroy my ignorance as best I could. I traveled to many corners of this world. I learned many things. I was not always a shaman. I was once a hunter, like my . . . like Urusham. But I learned the ways of the spirits. And when they had nothing left to teach me, I returned to tend to my village and to be the father I should have been."

"But you said nothing!" sneered Urusham.

"Urusham," Akisham said, trying to assuage his anger.

"You were happy," Katyr shrugged. "My brother had been all the father you needed. I would only bring back unhappy times. So I stepped aside, for your sake and for my brother's, for you deserved his memory more than mine."

"At last the truth," Urusham muttered.

"It was only when he died that you began seeking out your mother," Katyr continued. "I stayed out of it. It was my hope that you and she could bridge what had happened and recapture what you both had lost. Without me involved, perhaps she would let her hurt subside. Alas, it was not to be."

"Glib words," Urusham replied. "Why should I believe them? You rejected me! You hid from me my entire life!"

"Are you happier knowing?" Katyr asked. Urusham didn't respond. "Had you lived your entire life thinking Kallisio was your father, it would have been better for you."

"Perhaps you are right," Urusham sneered. He turned and headed back into the forest. Akisham chased after him.

"Maybe if you had told him," Sailor Moon added as she helped Katyr to his feet, "a lot of this could have been avoided."

"If I had kept my vow," Katyr responded, "it all could have been avoided. But the past is a chiseled tablet, resistant to revision."

Urusham and Akisham walked through the forest. Uncertain how to soothe the hurt and anger her companion felt, Akisham cautiously reached out and slid her hand into his. Her fingers closed around it. Though her merwyn form had many benefits, this was something she could only do as a human. Thankfully Urusham didn't pull away.

"Would that I could caress your brow and wipe your injury away," Akisham offered. "My sister had no right . . ."

"Please, Akisham," Urusham said softly. "Do not burn the bridge. Your family is a precious thing. Heed the words of one who no longer has one."

"I care not for my family!" Akisham whirled him around so he faced her. "I care only for you! Your joy makes my heart sing! Your pain is like agony to me! If they deny you, then I deny them! If they would bar us . . .!"

Urusham put his fingers up to her lips to stop her from speaking. Akisham responded by kissing the fingers.

"Let me be your family, Urusham," she pleaded. "Let me share my life with you. Let me bear you sons that will one day lead this world to greatness!"

"Akisham, I . . ." he began. Fear flared in the woman's eyes.

"Or is my sister right? Do you hesitate because," Akisham looked away, "you cannot - - love - - one of my kind?"

His hand caressed her silky hair, but she wouldn't look at him.

"I am not my father," Urusham said gently. "I have known what you are since we were both young. Your beast side does not intimidate me," and he glanced at her womanly figure, "and your human side is quite pleasant." She looked back at him, hope again in her eyes. "But I cannot yet take a wife. I have - - much to deal with yet."

He darkened. Akisham sensed that he was conflicted and the conflict ate at him.

"I would not wish to hurt you for the world," he began torturously. "But there is the matter of the honor of the village, which your father so viciously attacked. It tugs at me, to make your father account for those he harmed in anger." Urusham grimaced. "The only thing that stays my hand - - is you."

"You would challenge my father?" Akisham asked fearfully.

"I would not wish you to be forced to choose," Urusham began.

"I would choose you!" she exclaimed. "But I beg you, do not do it!"

"Could you respect someone with no honor?" Urusham grinned. Akisham didn't respond, but the terror in her expression caused his grin to fade. "You think I would fall to him? Akisham, I am more skilled than you think. And if I do not challenge him, what will prevent him from attacking them again?"

"He cares not for the village!" cried Akisham. "He wanted vengeance for the merwyn you wounded. He only sought to protect Mellebet - - from you."

"And if I were to choose you for my wife," Urusham reasoned, "would he not seek to 'protect' you as well?" Akisham looked stricken.

"We can go away!" she proposed. "Far away, to another land where he cannot find us, where no one will know us!"

"How will that protect the village?"

"He cannot use their safety to coerce you if he does not know where we are!"

"And if he attacked in a fit of frustration and violence, because he . . .?"

"I DO NOT WISH TO LOVE YOUR MEMORY!" Akisham cried. She pressed her face against his chest. "Please, Urusham! He is my father and I love him! You are my intended and I love you! But he will slay you! I do not want that! And I do not want his blood on your hands, either. Either outcome is tragedy - - for me."

Silently Urusham placed his arms around Akisham and supported her against him. Such a dilemma he faced, for suddenly he found it very difficult wrestling with the thought of disappointing her. He had never thought of Akisham's feelings in his single-minded quest for honor and identity. There was no doubt in his mind that he could win against even so fearsome an opponent as King Toren. But now there was doubt as to whether he could do such a thing to the woman who meant so much to him, or whether he could ignore the cries of the deceased in order to please her.

Rustling in the brush brought them both to attention. They turned and found two merwyn guards standing thirty feet from them. Reflexively Urusham placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Princess Akisham," one of the guards said. "We have been instructed by Princess Mellebet to return you to the castle immediately."

"My sister knows I stand with Urusham," Akisham proclaimed. "I refuse."

"It is not our place to question," he replied. "We are instructed to return you to the castle - - by force if necessary."

Continued in Chapter 11


	11. Choose Love Or Hate

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 11: "Choose Love Or Hate"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>"<em>How could Toyotama-Hime leave her little baby?" Small Lady asked, genuinely shocked and horrified by such a turn of events.<em>

"_I guess," Rei began, searching for an answer to an unexpected question, "what happened between her and Hoori was just too painful for her to face. She couldn't live with the constant painful reminder of what had happened to her, so she decided not to face it. It isn't praiseworthy, even for a god."_

"_Did Hoori-San take care of him?" the child asked warily._

"_No," Rei replied sadly. "Hoori was never seen again. Some say he was so despondent over what he had done that he committed ritual suicide. Others say he took on the ways of a wanderer, seeking enlightenment as penance for what he did to Toyatama-Hime."_

"_Then who took care of the little boy?"_

"_Ugayafukiaezu was taken in by Hoori's brother, Hoteri," Rei assured her. "The fisherman, remember?" Small Lady nodded. "And Hoteri raised him as his own son. And Toyotama-Hime's younger sister, Tamayori, took pity on the child and helped Hoteri to raise him. And over the course of twenty years, Ugayafukiaezu grew up to be a strong and handsome man, the strongest and finest man in all of Japan. And," Rei smirked, "over the course of twenty years, Tamayori became closer and closer to the young man until she had fallen in love with him, and he with her. And when he reached manhood, they were married."_

"_He didn't betray her, did he?" Small Lady ventured timidly._

"_No," chuckled Rei. "Ugayafukiaezu knew Tamayori was the daughter of Ryujin and was a sea dragon. He loved her anyway."_

"_Good," Small Lady nodded in satisfaction. Rei bit her lip to keep from laughing._

"_And one day Ugayafukiaezu and Tamayori had a son," Rei continued. "And that son grew up to be Emperor Jimmu, the first Emperor of Japan."_

"_Like Daddy is?" Small Lady asked. Rei nodded. "But Daddy doesn't have a son. Who's going to be King after him?"_

"_Someone very close to me," Rei smiled and leaned in. Then she kissed Small Lady on the cheek. "But only if she goes to sleep."_

"_All right!" Small Lady chirped and rolled over onto her side. Rei got up and started to leave. "Auntie Rei?"_

"_Yes, Muffin?"_

"_Thank you," the child said, gratitude saturating every syllable of her words._

"_Anything for you, Muffin," Rei sniffed._

* * *

><p>King Toren entered the suite where his eldest resided and found her pacing back and forth, passing a window over and over again. Her beautiful face was pinched up in anger and her wings unconsciously flicked to the sides.<p>

"MELLEBET," he began.

"Father, why did you release Akisham?" Mellebet angrily demanded.

"SHE DOES NOT DESERVE IMPRISONMENT," Toren answered in measured tones. "SHE IS A PRINCESS OF THE MERWYN, JUST AS YOU ARE, AND ENTITLED TO RIGHTS AND RESPECT AS YOU ARE. AND SHE IS MY DAUGHTER AS YOU ARE."

"She is seeing a human!" Mellebet fumed. "She is seeing Urusham of all humans! You know how they are!"

"I KNOW HOW THEY CAN BE," Toren said. "I REMEMBER THE DAY."

"Then you must put a stop to this!" Mellebet exclaimed. "Command her! I have already dispatched a squad of guards to bring her back! You must command her to stop!"

Toren didn't respond. Impatiently Mellebet resumed pacing.

"MELLEBET," he began.

"I am trying to protect her!" snapped Mellebet. "Urusham will break her heart, just as his father did mine!"

"MELLEBET, THIS MUST CEASE," Toren told her. The merwyn stopped in her tracks and stared in shock at him. "AKISHAM IS OF AGE AND CAPABLE OF MAKING HER OWN CHOICES."

"He will break her heart and she will end up just as I!" bellowed Mellebet. "Betrayed! Alone! Dead inside, unable to love, unable to feel anything but hatred for the loathsome creature I gave myself to! I must protect her! Protect her as you should have protected me!"

"BUT YOU WERE SO HAPPY, MELLEBET," Toren offered. MY FONDEST WISH IN LIFE HAS ALWAYS BEEN YOUR HAPPINESS. I THOUGHT URUTARGA COULD MAKE YOU HAPPY. I WAS WRONG. BUT I WAS JUST AS WRONG IN ALLOWING YOU TO SINK INTO BITTERNESS BECAUSE YOU WERE HURT. I SOUGHT TO PROTECT YOU, AS YOU SEEK TO PROTECT AKISHAM, BY SHIELDING YOU FROM THE WORLD. BUT ALL I MADE YOU WAS BITTER AND HATEFUL. ALL YOU HAD WAS YOUR BITTERNESS AND HATRED TO GROW UPON, SO YOU GREW BITTER AND HATEFUL."

"I cannot be hearing this," Mellebet responded incredulously.

"DAUGHTER, IF ONE FALLS, THE SOLUTION IS NOT TO NEVER FLY AGAIN," Toren continued. "THE SOLUTION IS TO FLY AGAIN. IF NOT URUTARGA, THAN ANOTHER UNTIL YOU FOUND HAPPINESS AGAIN."

"You," Mellebet said, unable to comprehend, "side with her?"

"THIS IS YOUR OWN MAKING, MELLEBET," Toren replied. "WHEN YOU WARRED WITH THE HUMAN, URUSHAM, I STOOD WITH YOU BECAUSE YOU WERE MY KIND AND MY BLOOD. BUT NOW YOU WAR WITH AKISHAM. SHE, TOO, IS MY KIND AND MY BLOOD, AND NOW I MUST STAND FOR RIGHT RATHER THAN LOYALTY. THIS MUST STOP, MELLEBET. AKISHAM WILL BE FREE TO CHOOSE HER OWN PATH. AND MY SUGGESTION TO YOU, DAUGHTER, IS TO FIND SOMEONE TO OPEN YOUR HEART TO AGAIN. BE HE MERWYN OR HUMAN. . ."

"Alone," Mellebet said, refusing to any longer acknowledge her father. "I am truly alone."

"MELLEBET," Toren began. But Mellebet suddenly jumped onto her windowsill and lunged out into space. Toren ran to the window and peered out. He saw her flying off toward the mountain range. His first impulse was to give chase, to catch her and comfort her until she smiled at him the way she smiled when she was a pup. But he resisted. His indulgence of her had led her to this point. Now she must decide on her own whether to rejoin the world or be lost to him forever.

* * *

><p>"Princess Akisham," one of the guards said. "We have been instructed by Princess Mellebet to return you to the castle immediately."<p>

"My sister knows I stand with Urusham," Akisham proclaimed. "I refuse."

"It is not our place to question," he replied. "We are instructed to return you to the castle - - by force if necessary."

Akisham's form shifted to that of a merwyn. She crouched as she transformed.

"By force then," Akisham snarled, flashing sharp teeth.

The two merwyn guards snarled in return and began to circle Akisham from either side. Urusham drew his sword and faced the one to his left, allowing Akisham to concentrate on the one to her right. Seeing his advantage lost, the guard facing Akisham lunged at her. Teeth snapped, talons raked and wings whipped at eyes. Akisham rose to meet the charge and the two massive canines impacted hard and struggled for position.

The guard's partner stalked Urusham, held at bay by the sharp edge of his sword. Since the attack on the village by the river, the stories of his blade and the examples of its fearsome might in the wounded merwyn brought back to the castle had spread and it made the guard wary. But concern for Akisham made Urusham glance away. Seeing an opening, the merwyn guard attacked. Talons raked across Urusham's arm and chest as he dodged the lunge. His sword lashed out and caught the guard across the shoulder. Stung by the pain, the guard retreated from the sword's reach. But though he kept his distance, the guard crouched and waited for another opening. This was not good for Urusham, for he desperately wanted to come to his love's aid. The struggle behind him sounded fierce and he worried for her safety.

From the corner of his eye, Urusham saw someone emerge from the thick woods behind him. The guard before him risked a glance at who it was, then returned his attention to Urusham. The swordsman kept his wary eye locked on his opponent, but listened for where the new entrant was. If this new element got too close, Urusham would have to risk an attack from the merwyn by turning and defending against this mystery guest.

"Back!" called out a voice. Urusham recognized it as Katyr. To his amazement, the merwyn before him cringed in the face of Katyr's voice. "Back, beasts, before the spirit totem!"

Risking a glance, Urusham found Katyr midway between him and Akisham. He held a golden talisman above his head. Miraculously the two merwyn guards shrunk from the talisman as if it was painful to be in its presence. But Akisham as well was affected. Urusham was about to run to her aid.

"Princess Akisham!" Katyr called out. "Transform to your human form! It is your only defense against the spirit totem!"

Akisham did as she was instructed. When she fully transformed into a human, Urusham ran over and cradled her. There was an ugly gash on her shoulder and scratches on her chest and legs. But she no longer cringed from the talisman Katyr held.

"Go back to your castle!" Katyr commanded. "Tell she who sent you that the poison which cripples her soul will not be imparted upon these young ones!"

The guards hesitated, but they were powerless against the talisman. Finally they gave up and retreated back into the forest. Katyr lowered the talisman and placed it in his belt.

"I suppose I am to be grateful?" Urusham asked. He wouldn't face the shaman.

"That is your choice to make, Urusham. I only wish you to be happy," Katyr replied. He glanced at Akisham and saw her uncertainty as to how to treat him. "She is a fine woman. She will make you happy if you are good to her. Do not betray her, Urusham."

Urusham turned to reply to him, but Katyr was already returning to his cave. He stared after the man until he felt Akisham's hand on his chest. Looking at his love drove home the message Katyr had imparted.

Clearly he was doomed to betray someone in this situation.

Katyr found Sailor Moon, Helios and Sailor Saturn waiting for him when he returned to his cave. If their presence surprised him, he didn't let on.

"Do you wish something of me, Princess of Earth?" he asked placidly.

"I need to know what I can do to reach Toren and Mellebet and get them to call off this war with Urusham," Sailor Moon told him. "Or a way to reach Urusham. However, you probably know Toren and Mellebet better than you do Urusham, so I'm asking about them."

"You do not tiptoe around issues, Princess," Katyr replied.

"I'm not sure there's time to spare your feelings. Urusham is determined to avenge Toren's attack on the village."

"Perhaps not," Katyr demurred. "Urusham is in a quandary at the moment. His honor tells him to slay Toren. His desire for Akisham stays his hand. He is faced with a choice between love and hatred. If he listened to the words my brother, Kallisio, no doubt imparted upon him, he will choose love."

"Then Toren and Mellebet are all that stand in the way of peace," reasoned Helios.

"Toren has no desire for war," Katyr judged. "He seeks only to protect Mellebet and Akisham. If anything, a fruitful union between Akisham and Urusham would do much to mend the differences between the two races." Katyr sighed. "It is Mellebet that is the key. She has chosen the path of hatred and it will take much to dislodge her from it. If you are successful in this, you will indeed be a worthy successor to your mother."

"Sure. But how do I get to her? She refuses to meet with me, refuses to listen to anything I suggest, and in the times we've met by accident she's angry and aggressive," Sailor Moon lamented.

"Maybe if you tried talking to Toren again," suggested Saturn. "If he's not interested in war, maybe you can persuade him to talk Mellebet away from this. He's her father. He's got to have some influence on her. Certainly more than an outsider could muster."

"Her father has always been her sanctuary," Katyr nodded. "And if Mellebet is indeed menacing Akisham over her tryst with Urusham, he may be amenable, if only to protect Akisham from her older sister's misguided wrath."

"I'll try anything if it nips this in the bud," Sailor Moon said. "Helios, can you give me a ride to the castle?"

Helios answered by transforming into Pegasus. Sailor Moon easily mounted him and was about to fly off. Then she noticed Saturn. Saturn hadn't said anything and apparently wasn't going to. But she was noticeably anxious about this.

"Come on, Saturn," Sailor Moon smiled, extending her hand. "Room for one more."

The look of gratitude she got from Saturn made her feel ten feet tall.

* * *

><p>Two merwyn guards exited the forest and flew back toward the castle of King Toren. They flew with little enthusiasm, for they feared how news of their failure would be received. The Princess Mellebet had always been a pleasure to serve, except when service involved her human son Urusham. She always grew so irrational when he was part of the equation. When she found out that her sister was seeing Urusham, the Princess flew into a rage the like had never been seen. The guards both feared how she would react to them returning without her sister.<p>

"Where are you two going?" a question rang out. And instantly Princess Mellebet was hovering in their flight path. So startled by her sudden appearance and so unnerved by her anger, the two didn't realize that the Princess was actually out of the castle.

"Y-Your Highness," they gasped in unison.

"WHERE IS AKISHAM?" she demanded.

"We," one of the guards stammered out, "she resisted."

"And the human had a-a talisman of some sort!" the other blurted out. "We tried, but we could not resist its magicks!"

"What human?" Mellebet hissed, her eyes narrowing.

"He wore a long brown robe! And he resembled the hunter Urusham!"

"I believe he is the shaman of the village by the river!"

"Urutarga," Mellebet said through clenched teeth.

"Your Highness, we apologize for failing. . .!"

Mellebet lashed out and raked one guard across the face with her talons. She lunged at the other, burying her fangs into his neck and ripping flesh from him. Pushing past the guards, Mellebet rocketed for the forest, spitting out the flesh and blood of the unfortunate guard as she flew. Bleeding badly, the two guards struggled to cover the rest of the distance home.

* * *

><p>"There," Urusham smiled as he finished cleaning the gash on Akisham's shoulder. "When we get back to the village, I will get a clean cloth to wrap it with."<p>

Urusham and Akisham were sitting on the bank of the river. The village by the river was in sight.

"Is that wise?" Akisham asked.

"Your wound must be covered for it to heal," Urusham told her. Then he cupped her chin in his hand. "I do not wish to see such pretty skin marred by an ugly scar."

"Of course," Akisham said softly. "But - - the villagers know who I am. After what happened - - will I be welcome there?"

Urusham's smile dimmed.

"My father's attack is not likely forgotten," Akisham continued. "Even you think of vengeance against . . ."

She stopped when Urusham gathered her hands up in his.

"If you are not welcome here," Urusham said, looking deeply into her eyes, "then we will go elsewhere. You were not responsible for your father's actions, and I will see that you are not made to pay for them."

"But this is your home," Akisham argued.

"My home is wherever you are. I value the memories this place has for me. I value the comfort and familiarity. But these are pale and insignificant things if I must live without you, Akisham. I will sacrifice them willingly if I must."

"It thrills me to hear you say this," Akisham smiled. Then her smile dimmed. "But it will mean nothing if you follow through with your intention to avenge yourself upon my father."

He silently dabbed at Akisham's wounds with the wet cloth.

"Then that, too, must be sacrificed."

Akisham looked at him with surprise.

"Something the Earth Princess told me," Urusham explained. "How killing will not bring peace to the dead. It will only bring more dead."

"There is wisdom to it," Akisham said hopefully.

"And something - - Katyr - - said: That I should not betray you."

"My father has earned your enmity," Akisham looked down. "I have said I would choose you."

"But I should not make you choose," Urusham said earnestly. "And I will not. I foreswear my vow of vengeance against your father. Let there be no more violence between human and merwyn, if such an act will bring that about. The people of the village will be grateful if that comes about. Mayhap your father will, too?"

"You would do this for me?" Akisham asked.

"And no one else," Urusham smiled. Akisham returned his smile warmly. "From this day forth, let there be no more violence between human and . . ."

A furry white body slammed into the couple from above. Akisham pitched forward and landed in the river. She bobbed to the surface and searched for her love.

Urusham was pinned to the ground, great muscular forelegs pressing against his upper arms. A canine head lowered toward him from bunched shoulders. A pair of wings extended for extra leverage and a more menacing picture.

"You will not touch my sister," Mellebet growled, the sound feral and guttural. "And to make certain, I will do what I should have done the moment you sprang from my loins!"

Concluded in Chapter 12


	12. In An Orgy Of Rage

A PARENT'S LEGACY  
>Chapter 12: "In An Orgy Of Rage"<br>A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

* * *

><p>King Toren ushered in the wounded guards and ordered medical attention for them. His anger began to boil, for he assumed that they had run afoul of the human Urusham. This would be a quandary for him, for his first impulse was to attack the human village out of revenge for this effrontery. But to do so would break the heart of his younger daughter, Akisham, and that was something he didn't want to do. His daughters were special to him and he lived to make them happy.<p>

But when one of the wounded guards told him they were attacked not by Urusham, but by his own daughter Mellebet, the king's righteous fury turned to intense melancholy. He was about to fly off when he heard the beat of wings. Looking up, he found the Earth Princess astride a flying white horse hovering near him.

"Forgive me for intruding, Your Majesty," Sailor Moon said solemnly. "We need to talk about this situation before it erupts into more tragedy. Please hear me out. You must still have some influence with the Princess. If you could . . ."

"I FEAR YOU ARE TOO LATE, EARTH PRINCESS," Toren interrupted. "MY BEAUTIFUL MELLEBET HAS - - HAS LOST TOUCH WITH REASON. NONE HAVE INFLUENCE WITH HER NOW, I FEAR. SHE HAS BEEN CONSUMED BY HER HATRED AND HER ANGER FOR URUTARGA AND FOR HER SON." The canine wavered for a moment, emotions consuming him. "MY - - GRANDSON. POSSIBLY MY FUTURE SON-IN-LAW. SHE IS BEYOND INFLUENCE." His lip quivered. "IT IS MY BURDEN OF FAULT. I INDULGED HER FOR TOO LONG."

"Have you tried . . .?"

"YES!" barked the king. "SHE FLEW OFF IN A RAGE! ATTACKED TWO OF HER OWN KIND! NOW PLEASE LEAVE ME. I MUST BRING HER TO HEEL BEFORE HER GREAT RAGE HARMS ANYONE ELSE."

With that, King Toren launched himself into the sky and spread his great wings. Sailor Moon watched impotently, her last hope of solving this war peacefully dissolving before her eyes. When the Senshi communicator signaled, it was a source of irritation.

"Yes, what is it now?" she fumed into the device.

"You need to get back to the village!" Juno said urgently. "Mellebet is trying to kill Urusham!"

Quickly she closed the communicator. "YOUR MAJESTY!" Sailor Moon shouted to the rapidly disappearing merwyn king. "SHE'S THIS WAY!"

Pegasus circled around and headed for the village, he and Sailor Moon trusting that Toren had heard them. There wasn't time to try a second shout.

Down river from the village, Mellebet and Akisham were locked in a bitter duel while Urusham lay by the bank unmoving. The two merwyn bit and slashed with both wings and talons while the Asteroid Senshi stood nearby and looked for a way to help. Saturn was working her way around the conflict to Urusham as the two beasts savagely fought. In the distance, the villagers began to gather, curious about the titanic conflict.

"They're going to kill each other!" Ceres gasped.

"Maybe I can cool them off!" Juno exclaimed. "Aqua Initiation!"

A giant water spout rose up fifteen feet from the river, then arced down and splashed over the two merwyn. The force of the water sent them both rolling and centrifugal force separated them. Each merwyn came to a stop and instantly sprang into attack crouches. Akisham growled a warning to her older sister.

"Floral Stimulation!" Ceres called out. Then her eyes bulged and her mouth grew a surprised 'o'. "Just do it!" she snapped.

The limbs of a tree elongated and reached down, snatching Mellebet off of her feet. Once in the air, the limbs began to coil around her ribs and limbs. The soaked merwyn began to struggle to pull free. Thinking Mellebet restrained, Akisham turned and ran over to where Saturn was tending to Urusham.

"Does he live?" the beast asked her.

"Yes, I've got him," Saturn assured her as her violet energy repaired the internal damage and the talon cuts to his arms and shoulders.

Mellebet, though, proved to be more determined to escape than the tree was determined to hold her. With a large burst of strength, fueled by her seeing her sister again with Urusham, the merwyn princess tore the limbs away from the tree and shook free of them. Enraged, she charged Akisham and Saturn.

"Fiery Incantation!" Pallas shouted and threw up a wall of fire between Mellebet and her sister. The beast pulled up short, then crouched and leaped over the flames.

"Hope I can do this," Vesta muttered, moving forward from the position she had shared with Pallas. "Fauna Assimilation - Merwyn!"

As she ran, Vesta transformed into a merwyn, with two differences. Her fur was a reddish chestnut rather than white. She was also roughly a third of the size of Mellebet and half the size of Akisham. It didn't slow her down, though. Vesta intercepted Mellebet as she landed and sent them both tumbling toward a thicket of trees.

"Floral Animation!" Ceres shouted. Plant automatons, grown from her own seeds rather than the native vegetation, began to knit from sprouting vines until she had grown a dozen of the plant humanoids. Immediately she sent the automatons in to attack Mellebet.

Mellebet slashed viciously at Vesta, catching her across the back and ribs and sending the senshi rolling away in pain. Before she could press the attack, Ceres' plant men swarmed en masse. Two slashes ripped several of the automatons to shreds, but the rest tried valiantly to hold her down. Ceres produced another pouch of seeds to reinforce her troops. Akisham stayed back, guarding Urusham while Saturn ministered to him.

"Beautiful Incantation!" Pallas shouted. An invisible hand was added to Ceres' troops, pressing against the sternum of Mellebet and pushing her down to the ground. The action stopped Mellebet from slashing the plant men, which alleviated the feedback pain Ceres was enduring, and kept Mellebet at bay until something could be done to tranquilize her.

It was then Juno noticed Katyr standing to the side, watching. He was the picture of anguish at seeing the one true love of his life trying to murder his only son. She was about to encourage him to lend a hand, but thought better of it, recalling how his presence seemed to inflame Mellebet.

"You OK, Vesta?" Juno shouted.

"I'll live," Vesta grimaced. "Wish Sailor Moon would get here, though! Her Moon Tier might be the only thing that can stop that lady short of killing her!"

Then Katyr advanced toward Mellebet. The beast angrily struggled in the grip of Pallas's telekinesis and Ceres' plant animates. When she perceived his presence, she seemed to struggle that much more.

"Mellebet!" Katyr implored her. "Has my single sin against you blackened your soul so much? Has it driven you to this?"

"Akisham will not suffer the same fate I suffered!" bellowed Mellebet.

"There is no wisdom in this," Katyr argued, his voice dripping with anguish. "Mellebet, you were the most beautiful spirit in the universe. The sun rose and set upon you, sore and unable to compete."

"Except when I was a foul beast beneath your contempt!"

"You must stop this, Mellebet," Katyr sighed. "You punish me for my transgression. I accept that. I deserve it. But you also punish the world around you and they are innocent. And you punish yourself. You should not hate who you are, Mellebet. Only what you have become."

"The only thing I hate is YOU!" Mellebet spat angrily. "You and your entire foul race!"

"Pallas can't hold the bad doggie much longer!" Pallas cried, her face twisted with exertion.

At that, the merwyn bit down on the telekinetic hand. Pallas recoiled in pain and staggered back. Savagely Mellebet slashed the remaining plant soldiers, driving Ceres to one knee.

"Aqua Initiation!" Juno called out, sending another water spout slamming into Mellebet. But the merwyn princess braced for it and took the spout without moving. The spout eventually died away, leaving Mellebet panting, but standing.

Akisham bounded forward. Wings spread, fangs bared and talons up, she launched herself at her sister. Mellebet rose up to meet her and the two slammed to the ground and began rolling around in vicious close quarter fighting. It was then that Pegasus and Sailor Moon landed near Vesta and Pallas. Moments later, King Toren landed on the other side of the battle, between the forest and the bank where Urusham and Saturn were.

"CEASE!" he roared, but the two combatants continued their fight. Immediately the king waded in, swatting first Akisham and then Mellebet in opposite directions. "I WILL NOT HAVE THIS!" he roared.

"Akisham will not sully herself with a foul human!" snarled Mellebet, all reason consumed by her hatred.

"STAND DOWN, MELLEBET!" Toren demanded.

"NO!" the Princess roared back. "I will see this unholy coupling sundered forever! And if I must fight you and her and the entire merwyn nation, it will not come to pass!"

"MELLEBET," Toren said, emotion strangling his voice. "PLEASE! YOU HAVE DONE ENOUGH! RETURN TO ME! RETURN TO THE BEAUTIFUL SOUL I CHERISHED ALL THOSE YEARS! LET GO OF YOUR PAIN! I BEG OF YOU, MY CHILD!"

"So long as you side with her," Mellebet replied, her rage a thing alive, "I am NOT your child!"

Sailor Moon summoned the Moon Tier. Katyr eased up to her.

"Do you plan to slay her?" he asked.

"We don't do that sort of thing," she answered, her concentration locked on Mellebet. "Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!"

Pink energy radiated out across the clearing, touching everyone in its path. Ceres' pain eased, as did that of Pallas and Vesta. Saturn's healing power was boosted, giving Urusham the strength to sit up. Akisham found the pain of her wounds easing and her vitality returning. King Toren felt the agony of his daughter's condition ease to tolerance.

Mellebet jammed her eyes shut and grimaced. "NO!" she shouted, her shoulders hunched and her talons digging into the ground. "You do not defeat me with your devious touch! I will not be coerced! I will see this match broken! I will see Urusham dead! I will see Urutarga dead! I will have my revenge for the pain and humiliation I suffered with for all these long years!"

Sailor Moon didn't reply. She just concentrated harder. But Mellebet stubbornly resisted.

"LET THIS GO, MELLEBET!" Toren pleaded. "YOU WILL DESTROY YOURSELF THIS WAY, OR DESTROY ALL THAT YOU HOLD DEAR! QUIT THIS PATH BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!"

"And return to what?" Mellebet bellowed. "The loneliness of my broken heart? The solitude of my tower? I cannot go on so long as they live! And I will not allow Akisham to be dragged down into the pit of despair I am forever trapped in!"

Sailor Moon continued to focus her pink energy on Mellebet, but the merwyn stubbornly resisted. The senshi felt her crystal begin to strain, but just as stubbornly ignored the discomfort.

Without warning, Katyr suddenly touched Sailor Moon's shoulder with his hand. Sailor Moon went rigid. Her eyes rolled up into her head and she fainted. As her senshi broke for her, Mellebet, freed from the influence of her power, coiled and sprang forward, headed for Urusham and Saturn. Toren and Saturn rose up to intercept her while Akisham stood her ground as a last barrier. But Katyr broke forward, glowing pink, and caught Mellebet half way to her target. The shaman held the great merwyn up on her hind legs, his arms around her chest and his face pressed against her neck. Mellebet snarled angrily.

"I am sorry, my love," he said. "For everything."

The pair exploded in a violent pink-tinted ball of fire. Everybody fell back from the inferno. Mellebet was heard to shriek once. Moments later the fire died away. Toren ran up, but found only fine ash.

"MELLEBET..." Toren whispered in anguish.

"What happened?" Sailor Moon asked groggily, Helios cradling her as she sat on the ground.

"Katyr chose the ultimate penance for his actions," Helios replied softly. "And he has ended Mellebet's suffering."

For a moment, Sailor Moon didn't understand what Helios meant. Then she saw the ash floating in the air and the truth dawned on her.

"Why?" she grimaced.

"He saw no other way to end her madness," Helios offered. "Perhaps there was no other way." The dream guardian looked over to King Toren, grieving openly over the remains of his eldest daughter, Akisham solemnly approaching. "Whether he has ended this war of anger and revenge depends upon them now."

"Father?" Akisham ventured timidly, her own eyes filled with pain. Toren angled his head toward her, but his eyes remained closed by his grief.

"DID SHE HURT YOU BADLY, AKISHAM?" Toren choked out.

"No, Father," she told him. "Why, Father? Why couldn't she let go?"

"I SHALL WONDER THAT FOR THE REST OF MY DAYS," Toren sighed. "YOU ARE MY ONLY CHILD NOW, AKISHAM. IF URUSHAM IS WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY, I GIVE YOU MY BLESSING." He tilted his head to the side further so he was addressing Urusham. "MAKE HER HAPPY, URUSHAM. LEARN THE LESSONS OF YOUR FATHER."

"I swear by my life, Your Majesty," Urusham replied.

Toren was silent for a beat. "URUTARGA SAID THAT TO ME ONCE."

Then he pushed off the ground and took to the air, returning to his castle.

* * *

><p>A transport bubble flew through space, headed for Earth.<p>

"Uh, Sailor Moon," Juno spoke up. "We're drifting a little."

There was no response.

"Maiden," Helios said sharply. Sailor Moon returned from her introspection. "Attend to what you are doing. There will be time enough later to brood."

The Princess's cheeks flushed.

"At least there's peace now," Saturn offered in consolation.

"Hell of a way to achieve it, though," Sailor Moon frowned.

"Sometimes it's the only way," Vesta said, not looking at anybody. "Some folks just won't let go of their hatred. Like it's the only thing keeping them going."

"I really don't want to believe that," Sailor Moon concluded.

The transport bubble touched down on the aeropad atop the Crystal Palace. When the energy dissipated, the senshi found King Endymion, Queen Serenity and the elder Senshi waiting for them. Naturally Serenity must have sensed them coming. The Asteroids let go of each other's hands.

"Excuse me. I have to go call Hiroki," Ceres said, scampering away from the group.

"Excuse me. I have to go tell Yutaka I'm back," Saturn said, scampering away from the group.

"Excuse me. I have to go wash my hair," sighed Juno. She trudged away from the group, nodding to the elders as she passed.

"Hey, Pallas, you want to grab a pizza?" Vesta asked.

"Pallas would like that," Pallas said innocently. "But PKE class is in six minutes. Pallas can't be late."

"Cut," Vesta shrugged. "It's not like you really need it."

"VESTA!" gasped Pallas. "That's naughty!"

"Only if you get caught," scowled Vesta. Pallas continued to stare in shock at her. Makoto sauntered over and leaned in to Vesta.

"Stop being a bad influence on her," Makoto teased. Vesta shrugged and headed inside. Makoto herded Pallas away and the other elders followed, Rei glancing back at Sailor Moon.

"Miss Makoto-Ma'am?" they heard Pallas ask. "Can Pallas have a bowl of Sugar Bombs?"

"You've probably had enough sugar for this month," Makoto replied.

"BUT PALLAS WANTS THEM!" whined the senshi.

"Maiden," Helios began, turning to the still melancholy Sailor Moon, "should you wish it, I will be free tonight," and he leaned in and kissed her, "for whatever you have in mind. But now I must tend to my duties as dream guardian."

"I'm going to take you up on that," Sailor Moon told him earnestly. "I really don't like the way this ended - - and I can't shake the feeling that I've experienced this before."

Helios walked away, followed by a sigh and smirk from Queen Serenity. That elicited a stern glare from Luna, who was between the King and Queen. Sailor Moon, reverting to Usa, noticed none of it.

"You've got that 'oh I failed, woe is me' look on your face again," Serenity frowned. Usa responded with a disdainful glance. "What happened?"

"Well, we protected Urusham," Usa detailed. "Stopped a war between two races. Gave Urusham and his love a chance to live happily."

"That sounds like a pretty successful day to me," offered Endymion.

"But I didn't do any of it," Usa argued. "It came about because two beings died. That's not exactly a great solution to a problem. Everything I tried to do to diffuse the situation failed miserably."

"That," Endymion said, putting his arm around his daughter's shoulder and pulling her in close, "is going to happen."

"Yes, Honey, take it from a couple of really old - - um, I mean experienced campaigners," Serenity added. "Sometimes you try your best and nothing comes of it. Or you don't see the results for years or decades. Or peace comes about from something totally unrelated to what you did."

"The important thing is that you make the effort," Endymion counseled. "And as long as peace is achieved, it doesn't matter who gets the credit."

"I didn't do this for credit!" bristled the teen.

"The important thing is that you tried," Serenity emphasized. "Peace won't come about unless enough people make the effort. And a movement starts with a single person. It's easy to get discouraged when things don't happen immediately, but what you did will make a difference."

* * *

><p>Usa nodded thoughtfully. Her mom could make sense when she wanted to.<p>

_Outside of the Royal Chamber, Rei encountered Serenity. Instantly she read the guilt and recrimination the Queen was feeling._

"_Thank you for being there for her, Rei," Serenity said softly._

"_I'm not trying to replace you in her heart," Rei assured her._

"_I know," Serenity sighed. "It's my fault that she's so lonely." Her lip began to quiver._

"_Serenity . . ."_

"_I swore I wasn't going to do this to her!" Serenity began to cry. "I swore that I wasn't going to give Wiseman anything to twist to turn her to evil!" Serenity clutched at her hair in anguish. "But it's like I have to be five people sometimes! Everybody needs so much!"_

"_Serenity!" Rei said sharply. Serenity quieted immediately and looked down. "She understands. I know. I've seen it. Just because Wiseman manages to catch her in a weak moment when she's scared and uncertain doesn't mean you failed as a mother."_

_Serenity's lip and jaw continued to quiver. Not trusting her speaking voice, the Queen finally nodded. Rei watched her glide into the Royal Chambers and into Small Lady's bedroom. At the edge of the child's bed, the Queen leaned over, catching her golden hair trails in her hands, and lightly kissed the sleeping girl on the forehead._

_And a memory stirred in the priest, of a raven-haired little girl about the same age being kissed by her mother, a mother not long for that world. It spurred a single tear to trickle down Rei's cheek even as the corners of her mouth curled into a sentimental smile._

END


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